


Shards of a Broken Hourglass

by Janie94



Series: Dark Before the Dawn [2]
Category: Football RPF
Genre: Alternative Universe - Super Powers, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blood and Torture, Borderline Personality Disorder, Complicated Relationships, Depression, Grief/Mourning, M/M, Mental Link, Minor Character Death, Multiple Personalities, Polyamory, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-02
Updated: 2018-08-24
Packaged: 2018-09-14 06:26:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9165955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Janie94/pseuds/Janie94
Summary: It has been four months since Robert got trapped in the past. Thomas and Marco are willing to do whatever it takes to get him back. But can they truly make the impossible happen and overcome the biggest obstacle imagineable, time itself?Meanwhile Robert is struggling to accept his fate, his fear of staying alone forever slowly turning him into the monster he is so afraid to become. Will Thomas and Marco be able to save him from himself or will they come too late?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In case there are any new readers: Please read the first part of this series 'Let the Right One In' first, otherwise this story here won't make much sense. 
> 
> I can't believe it has already been more than two months since I sentenced Robert to such a cruel fate and left Thomas and Marco to search for him. I know I shouldn't be starting this sequel now of all times, not when I have so many other WIPs already and don't even know how often I will be able to update or if I will update at all. Those of you who haven't read 'Feel Your Echoes' will probably be confused now, but I don't want to write the same again, so those who are wondering what I'm talking about can just read the note at the beginning of chapter six of 'Feel Your Echoes'...
> 
> This story won't be as long as 'Let the Right One In', but it will still have multiple chapters and I will need your support and visible feedback to finish it, that much I know already. So it's up to you if this story gets finished and if there will be the intended third part as well.  
> I hope to see some familiar faces from the 'Let the Right One In' again who haven't read my recent works. :)
> 
> The prologue is from a side character's narrative perspective again (as will be the epilogue) while the chapters will switch between Thomas' and Robert's point of views, depending on whose story needs to be told at the moment.  
> Now enough blabla, it's time for Thomas and Marco to save Robert.

 

**  
Shards of a Broken Hourglass**

 

 

**Prologue**

 

Many days had passed since he had left the dark of his prison for good. That he had shed the suffocating stench of fear and pain and gave himself over to his instincts. He had run further and further, desperate to bring as much distance as possible between himself and the man who had tortured him and so many others, the man they had called Iker.

Now he was back in the safety of Mother Nature, her trees and bushes surrounding him and giving him shelter, no matter how far he was running. Many moons had passed since he had escaped and he was slowly growing accustomed again to sleeping out in the open, on a branch of a tree, so high that he felt secure enough to succumb to sleep. But now that he was not on constant alert anymore, his second ability – the one Iker had captured him for – made itself known again.

He had just closed his eyes to get some rest when all of a sudden his dream-self opened its eyes and he instantly knew that he had entered someone’s nightmare.

_He was in a human form – how unsettling it was to see events through someone else’s eyes – and standing on something high, a bridge perhaps, a strong river underneath him._

_In his mind’s eye he could see a lot of humans, but the one whose dream – or conscious because this felt too real to be a dream – he had entered, focused on two of them and they were kind of familiar – faces he had seen right before his escape; a blond with amber-green eyes and a dark blond with green-blue ones._

“ _I hope you will forgive me for this. But I can’t do this any longer, I just want the pain to be over. If there is a life beyond this one, maybe we will see each other again.” The man takes a deep breath before leaning forward, his hands gripping the railing the only thing keeping him from falling. “I love you.”_

_And then he let go._

The same moment Mats’ grip on the too real dream slipped and he awoke, curled into a tight ball with his face pressed tightly against the black fur of his flank.

He was breathing hard and soaked in sweat while he replayed what he had just seen, the astonishing details that were so different from the haze that usually surrounded him when he was dream walking.

The question was, had this really only been a dream? Or had it been real?

 

**Chapter 1**

 

_The loud scream shattered Thomas and he turned away from the others, his head hurting so much as though it was going to explode. It was over after a few seconds and he approached Cristiano hesitantly, wondering why the older man had lashed out with his ability. He froze when he saw the figure lying on the ground, saw Cristiano clutching the dead body of his lover as he wept. Thomas couldn’t turn his eyes away from the sight of Lionel’s burnt body, his face unrecognizable._

_Lionel was dead. And it was Thomas who had killed him._

Thomas jolted up in his bed, eyes wide in panic.

This memory had been haunting him for four months now, but it didn’t become any easier to bear. The guilt and pain still tugged at his heart and he had been avoiding Cristiano ever since because he couldn’t stand to see the proof of his murder. He wanted to believe that Cristiano had moved on, that his eyes weren’t as broken as they are in his memory, but in his heart Thomas knew the truth.

Cristiano had loved Lionel with all his heart. They had just found their way back to each other after such a long time of being lonely and Thomas had destroyed everything.

He leaned to the side and switched on the lamp on his nightstand. He was surprised that he wasn’t lying in a pile of ash and burnt covers. During his nightmare he usually lost control over his fire ability, the one he had learned to despise so much. Without it Lionel would still be alive. And Robert would still be here with him.

He shoved his bitter thoughts away and got up from the bed.

It was still in the middle of the night yet Thomas knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep anymore. Sleep was what he most dreaded; the time he felt most vulnerable because the memories always caught up with him.

He walked down the stairs of his house carefully and noticed with a frown that there was light coming from his living room. Marco couldn’t still be awake, could he?

When he turned the corner, it was indeed Marco who was sitting on the couch, the only place where there was any room to sit. The ground was covered with dozens of folders, just like when Thomas had left for bed a few hours ago.

Marco was sitting at the edge of the couch, knees drawn to his chest and a cup of steaming hot coffee in his hands. He looked as horrible as Thomas felt, dark rings under his eyes and his face even paler than usual. His amber-green eyes were watching Thomas thoughtfully.

“You had another nightmare.” It wasn’t a question.

Thomas sat down next to him on the couch. “The same as usual. Leo’s death.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Marco told him softly and like always the words only fueled Thomas’ anger. He didn’t want anybody to defend him.

This time he wasn’t in the mood for a fight though, so he didn’t comment on it. “You were suppressing my fire ability, weren’t you? This time I didn’t wake up to flames or ashes, but I could still feel my control slipping. There is no way I could have stopped them on my own.”

Marco nodded. “I could feel your ability rising to the surface and thought you might need help with it.”

“Thank you,” Thomas told him with a grateful smile tugging at his lips.

“It’s fine. Just see it as me making amends. You wouldn’t have to sleep so much and relive those memories if you weren’t constantly feeding me your own energy, so I wouldn’t have to sleep.”

Thomas met his piercing gaze and took in how bad he looked, like a man that was close to a breakdown. It was true, he had used his ability to feed his energy to Marco so the blond wouldn’t have to sleep so much, but despite his own nightmares Thomas hadn’t regretted his decision. Marco’s nightmares accompanied by his panic attacks were a lot more dangerous and he never ever wanted to wake up to the sound of Marco’s screams echoing through his house. Marco had been through so much and lost so many people that Thomas wanted to ease at least some of his pain even though it was just a small help. And besides, he had promised Robert to take care of Marco. It was the last thing Robert had asked of him and Thomas would rather die than disappoint him.

Marco already looked like he was going to fall asleep any second, so clearly he was due for another boost again. “Do you want me to do it again? I’ve managed to sleep for a few hours, enough time to recharge my batteries.”

Marco bit his lip hesitantly, clearly torn between guilt that he was the reason Thomas had to endure his nightmares so often and the fear of his own ones.

Thomas reached out with his hand in an inviting gesture. “It doesn’t matter if I wake up to the sound of my own screaming or yours. So please let me help you at least, Marco.”

The blond gave in then, taking the offered hand and pulling until Thomas was lying on top of him, the younger man’s head resting on his chest. It was their preferred position for the energy transfer as it was always draining for Thomas and he required several minutes to regain his strength.

“Ready?” he asked and when Marco squeezed his hand in response, he closed his eyes and let his mind float. He was careful to linger at the surface of Marco’s conscious, unwilling to dive deeper into him because Thomas was too afraid of what he would find there. He vividly remembered the bond that had connected Robert’s and Marco’s minds; a bond he had thought unbreakable, but now that Robert was gone and at a place they couldn’t reach, he didn’t want to see the evidence of it in Marco’s mind – the hollow core where Robert had been. He was curious and his own mind longed to connect this special way with Marco even if it was just to share their pain this way, to have proof that he wasn’t the only one suffering so much. But he was too afraid of getting his worst fears confirmed, of Robert’s absence in Marco’s mind.

So Thomas kept away from the depths of Marco, instead focusing on the thin veins of his life energy and feeding them his own strength. Marco gasped underneath him, the sensation at being touched from the inside still startling him after all these weeks that they had done this. Thomas watched as the purple veins grew stronger, but they remained erratic. Thomas still remembered when he had first connected with Marco and had tried to fix him just a little bit, his own light blue energy calming Marco’s spiraling mind and turning it into a dark blue river. Back then he had thought about fixing Marco permanently, a thought that was beyond the impossible now. Because now Thomas own conscious was a mess as well, guilt and grief destroying him from the inside just like it was the case with Marco. Now they were only two broken men trying to keep each other from shattering into pieces.

Marco tugging at his arm brought him back to the present and with a lot of effort he fought his way back to the surface, too exhausted to open his eyes just yet.

“It’s enough, Thomas,” Marco said in a soothing voice, his hand rubbing Thomas’ back to keep him warm. Thomas nuzzled closer to Marco’s body, desperately seeking his warmth.

Marco let it happen without protest, he merely turned them, so that they were lying side by side and he had room to move. “Thank you for doing this. I wish there was something I could do for you in return.”

“You already did,” Thomas mumbled before finally opening his eyes again. “You kept my fire ability at bay tonight. If you would do that more often, that would already help me a bit.”

“Fine,” Marco replied. “Then that’s what I will do from now on.”

He got up then, ignoring Thomas’ disappointed whine as he made his way to a particular small pile of folders. “Before you woke up, I finally found something.”

Thomas was awake instantly, getting up so fast from the couch that it made his head spin. “What is it?”

Marco took the yellow folder on top and opened it. “His name is Erik Durm, he’s living here in Germany. Dortmund to be more precise.” Thomas walked over to him on swaying feet and took a look at the picture in the folder, a handsome young man with light-brown hair and hazel eyes. There’s was a red stamp on his paper that made Thomas frown. “He was supposed to be abducted from his home and brought into Iker’s home last month.”

“Well, good thing that Iker is dead thanks to our trip into the past,” Marco remarked in a bitter tone. “At least he couldn’t hurt even more of us than he already did. Probably the only good thing to come out of messing with the timeline.”

Thomas quickly read through the details of the file and when he reached the description of Erik’s ability, he finally got why Marco was convinced this man would be able to help them.

“Finding what your heart most desires?” Thomas read out aloud disbelievingly. “What kind of ability is that? Does he look into a crystal ball and see what your greatest desire is?”

Marco shrugged. “I don’t care as long as it works. Let’s wait until morning, so Manu can join us. Then we can pay a visit to Erik and ask him for help.”

Thomas felt a shimmer of hope blooming in his chest, the first in these four long months of frantically searching for a way to bring Robert back. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll try to get a bit of sleep before Manu arrives.”

He was just about to turn away and walk upstairs into his bedroom when Marco grabbed his wrist to stop him. Thomas turned to him, unsure what to expect. Marco’s eyes were burning intently and Thomas wasn’t sure whether it was from the energy transfer or from finally being one step closer to their goal.

“You won’t be having another nightmare tonight, Thomas” Marco announced with conviction. “I’d give anything to get Robert back and Erik will help us. You have to believe in that.”

“I do,” Thomas replied and he really meant it. “And I feel the same as you. You don’t have to worry about my conviction; I’m willing to make any sacrifice to get Robert back as well.”

Marco nodded and let him go then, his eyes following Thomas until he had left the room.

This time when Thomas dropped onto the mattress of his bed, it was the first time in four months that he fell asleep with a smile on his face.

He would find Robert; that was all that mattered at the moment.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back after having spent more than a week in bed because of the damn flu and I'm a bit thrown off the track regarding my stories now.  
> This chapter we will finally see Robert again and I'm so curious what you think of it. I certainly didn't realize just how much I had missed him until I started writing this chapter.  
> The next chapter of Feel Your Echoes will be up by Friday as well. :)

 

**Chapter 2**

 

He had waited near Iker’s house for more than a week before finally giving up. The portal suddenly closing right after Lionel and Thomas had walked through it, should have told him already that something had gone horribly wrong. But still, he had hoped that perhaps Lionel was merely too exhausted to hold the portal open and that he would come back for Robert once he had recovered. But as the days had passed by, Robert had slowly begun to realize that Lionel had to be dead. And that Robert was now stuck in the past, something he hadn’t expected at all. He had been convinced that he would die trying to kill The Darkness and buy Thomas enough time to escape. But somehow he had won and Robert couldn’t shake off the feeling that The Darkness had wanted him to win. He could have easily killed Robert in the blink of an eye – obviously he was a lot more powerful than Robert would perhaps ever be – but for some reason he hadn’t done so, instead choosing his own death over Robert’s. It wasn’t making any sense.

After waiting for one week Robert figured it was time to accept his fate and try to move on. The first few days were an absolute nightmare since Robert’s knowledge of Spanish merely included a few words and phrases, making it hard to communicate with many of Madrid’s citizen. The fact that he neither had money nor a real identity didn’t help either and so he was forced to sleep in the open, finding a place on top of a rock at the beach. Behind him was the loud and noisy city, in front of him the calm waves of the sea, a strange contrast that he found slightly calming.

It was one of these nights in his third week that he sat on the rock again, staring at the black water when someone approached him hesitantly.

“What is your story?” a voice asked in English and Robert turned his head to find a tall man around his age standing a few feet away from him. He had tussled dark brown hair, a slim face and the kindest eyes Robert had ever seen. Despite him being taller than Robert he looked kind of cute, like a puppy.

“What story?” Robert shot back confused.

The man sat down next to Robert with a little smile. “You’ve been sitting here for hours now, staring into the distance with that melancholy look in your eyes. I’ve seen that one before.” His eyes softened even more though that should definitely be impossible. “You lost someone.”

“Am I that obvious?” Robert retorted once he had overcome his surprise.

“My boyfriend’s brother has been missing for exactly one year now and people tell him he should accept that his brother is dead. So I know that look in your eyes.” The man shuffled closer before putting an arm around Robert, startling him with the unexpected touch. “I’m not going to push you into talking about this. But you can’t stay here and wallow in self-pity forever.”

Robert sighed before returning his gaze to the ocean. “And what do you suggest I should do then?”

The man regarded him thoughtfully. “Go to your family, you need to surround yourself with people you love. Go home.”

Robert closed his eyes at the jab piercing his chest. “I don’t have a home. Not anymore.”

“Everybody has a home,” the man contradicted him softly. “A place which gives him the feeling that this is where he belongs.”

“I don’t belong anywhere.”

“That place can also be a person,” the man remarked and Robert tensed as he thought of Thomas and Marco. “That longing in your eyes, that’s what I was looking for. So you do have a home then.”

“I suppose I do,” Robert admitted and it felt liberating to say it out loud. “But my home is out of reach. I would like to go back there, but I can’t.” The man eyed him for a while and Robert was sure he would ask for details, but instead he offered his hand. “I’m Javi.”

Robert looked down at the hand, then back up into Javi’s warm brown eyes. “Robert.”

“Nice to meet you, Robert. Come on, let’s hurry, he doesn’t like it when I’m wandering alone through the city in the middle of the night.”

“Who?” Robert asked confused and he got a sheepish smile in response.

“My boyfriend of course,” Javi replied with a chuckle before gripping Robert by the arm and dragging the smaller man with him.

“Where are we going?” Robert asked, feeling irritated at being manhandled like that.

Javi flashed him a wide smile. “To his house. You can stay there with us until we have found a way to get you back home.”

Robert was stunned silent for several moments before he found his voice again. “But you don’t even know me. Why would you want to help me?”

“Because you remind me of him. After his brother’s disappearance, he looked as lost as you do right now.”

“And if he doesn’t like me?” Robert said, feeling childish all of a sudden.

Javi gave him an amused grin. “I know he will. You’re lost and in need of help.” Then his grin turned into a suggestive smirk as his eyes traveled down Robert’s body slowly. “And you’re not bad to look at either.” Robert blushed and Javi winked playfully. “Trust me, he will love you. Don’t be surprised if he treats you like the sun of his solar system for the next few days.”

Robert raised an eyebrow at the weird comparison, wondering what Javi meant with that.

Half an hour later he perfectly understood.

Javi’s boyfriend – a handsome young man almost two heads shorter than him– was buzzing around Robert with a one thousand watt smile on his face and treating Robert like a long lost friend.

It was absolutely endearing. He had introduced himself as Thiago before pulling Robert to the table and presenting him more food than Robert could ever stomach. Javi was just sitting opposite Robert and watching everything with an amused smile and mouthing ‘I told you so’.

In the end Robert had to get up again, grab Thiago by the shoulders and forcefully push him down into the chair next to Javi, otherwise the younger man would have never sat down.

“I have to thank both of you for your kindness,” Robert tells them with a little smile. “But I’m still convinced that you would regret it if you knew me closer.”

Thiago chuckled. “You think we would be scared of your power? That we would judge you for being different?”

Robert froze. “How do you know about my power?” Panic filled him from the inside and he wondered if this was it, if these two men who had taken him in so kindly turned out to have ulterior motives.

Thiago’s reply took him by surprise though. “Because I have a power of my own. I can sense if people with abilities are nearby.”

Robert didn’t know what was more unsettling. That even now 30 years in the past, he seemed to find people with abilities so easily or the fact that for the first time the voice in his head was entirely quiet.

Every time Robert had found out an ability it had started whispering to him, yearning for its owner’s power.

Cristiano, Lionel, Mario, Marco, Thomas, Manuel, Bastian. Even Miroslav though his ability wasn’t something Robert should be able to acquire. He had been so glad that Marco was suppressing that damn insistent voice when all of them were in Lionel’s living room, discussing the plan that was meant to save their kind, but had turned out to be an absolute failure instead.

The mere memory of The Darkness made a shiver run down Robert’s spine. He had known all along that the voice in his head wasn’t entirely him, that it had an intelligence of his own. But to see the manifestation in blood and flesh, to see with his own eyes what monster he was harboring inside of him had been beyond shocking.

Robert was afraid. Of himself and what he was capable of becoming.

But ever since he got trapped here in the past, the voice had been completely silent. Robert wasn’t foolish enough to hope it was gone forever, after all he had only killed a version that was from five years in the future. But he was still wondering for the reason of this unusual silence in his mind.

“Robert, are you alright?” Thiago asked concerned, shaking Robert out of his musing.

“Yeah, I’m fine. So you knew I had an ability the moment I walked through the door?”

“No,” Thiago argued with a smile spreading on his face. “I already knew about your gift when I first passed you on the beach. You were sitting on that rock and I felt drawn to you immediately and the closer I got, the worse it became.”

“It’s how he found me,” Javi added from beside Robert, his eyes regarding his boyfriend fondly. “Six years ago I was walking through the streets of Madrid and suddenly that stranger was standing in front of me, blocking my way. He looked at me as though I had hung the moon and all he said was ‘You’re like me’. That’s how our story began.”

So Javi had an ability too. Robert bit his lip to keep himself from asking about it as he didn’t really want to know more about it, fearing that it was something that would spark the interest of the voice in his head.

“That’s a beautiful story. My ability is different though, it’s not a gift but a curse.”

But apparently they didn’t want to understand his warning. Thiago only leaned closer and reached out for Robert’s arm.

“Everybody who is different thinks that. I thought that too until I met Javi.”

His soft smile, his never-ending kindness was too much for Robert. He wasn’t exactly sure why he wanted Thiago to finally see him for who he really was. “Thiago, I have killed someone. An innocent.”

The smaller man’s smile faltered, but it didn’t make way to shock like Robert had expected it to. Instead it was tinged with sympathy. “A friend of yours?”

Robert nodded as an image of Mario flashed up in his mind and he felt a lump forming in his throat. “I killed him for his power. Because I wanted it for myself.”

“That doesn’t really sound like you,” Thiago said after a short moment.

“You don’t know me.”

“You’re right, I don’t. But you don’t have the eyes of a cold-blooded murderer,” Thiago said quietly. “You have the eyes of a man who has lost everything he has ever held dear.”

Robert stared back at this man who was already seeing too much after only having known him for two hours. “That’s what scares me the most. One day I will have to accept that I’m all alone now and I’m afraid what will happen once the loneliness becomes too much to bear.”

“You’re not alone, not completely. You have us now,” Thiago clarified. “And we will help you find a way back to your friends, to your home.”

“That’s very nice of you, but I don’t think there is a way. My home is 30 years in the future.” Finally he had managed to wipe the smile off Thiago’s face and he continued explaining, “Me and my friends tried to rectify the past and now I’m stuck here forever.”

It was silent for a long moment before Thiago spoke again. “I’m so sorry to hear that. I can’t even begin to imagine what this must feel like.”

Robert forced a little smile. “I’m tired. Do you have a place where I could stay the night?”

“My brother’s room is still free, you can take his while you’re staying with us,” Thiago replied and he stood up to lead Robert through the narrow hallway.

The room Thiago led him into was small but cozy and it was so stuffed with private belongings as though the Spaniard’s brother had just left.

“Everything is still exactly like my little brother Rafinha left it behind,” he said and for the first time he sounded sad.

“Thank you for letting me stay here,” Robert replied and squeezed Thiago’s shoulder before he was left alone in the room.

For a while he just stood there at a loss of what to do, trying to think some more about these two brothers instead of the turmoil of feelings inside of him that had been stirred up by the conversation with Thiago and Javi. He got rid of his clothes with shaking hands, taking a long hot shower, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t relax.

He missed his friends. And most of all he missed Thomas and Marco, his two lovers he had to leave behind. Had they accepted by now that he was gone? Were they still staying at Lionel’s house or had they separated and returned to their old lives? Or rather what was left of it. Thomas for sure couldn’t go back to his job as a paramedic, after all he had kidnapped a patient from the hospital and that was certainly the end of a career as a life savior. Marco had now lost two of his past lovers with Mario being dead and Robert as good as dead. Was he staying with Cristiano again and trying to console him after Lionel’s death. Or was Marco too caught up in his own pain?

Robert got into a pair of pajamas that must have belonged to Thiago’s brother and stared at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. He looked horrible, eyes sunken in and the blue iris appearing dull and jaded.

But it was his throat that caught his attention. There, tight above the pulse point was a dark mark and Robert felt a painful jab at the memory of his last night with Thomas when they had all still been under the impression that Lionel’s plan would work and they would have to sacrifice Thomas’ life. Robert had asked the younger man to leave a permanent mark, something that would always remind him of Thomas.

The mark was still there, but the wound was sealed now, slowly fading to a scar like the many others on Robert’s upper body, scars that Marco inflicted on him in his thirst for revenge.

Robert raised his hand to the mark, but there was no pain as he pressed down on it and suddenly panic coursed through his body. This mark was the only thing he had still got from Thomas. And it was healing.

He pressed down on it as hard as he could, burying his fingernails in the fading imprints of Thomas’ teeth until they pierced the skin, freeing small droplets of the red blood underneath it.

He only stopped when his throat was throbbing with pain and he had managed to tear open the entire wound. He stared at it in the mirror, relief flooding him at the sight of the renewed mark and the visible proof of Thomas’ love for him.

But it felt incomplete. There was still something amiss and it took him longer than it should have to figure it out.

Marco.

Robert’s gaze dropped to the largest scar on his collarbone, one that was long healed but he could still remember how he got it.

It was during their third night together when Marco had been fighting with him, accusing him of having killed Mario just so Robert could have the blond for himself. Robert hadn’t contradicted him and that had apparently only made it worse until Marco had slashed his long knife over Robert’s collarbone which finally drew a reaction from him, a pained yelp…

Robert’s fingers ghosted over the scar, noting how straight it was and he knew he would only deform it if he tried to tear it open with his bare hands.

He dropped his eyes to the sink, searching for something that would be sufficient until his eyes landed on the razor to his left, the long blade the perfect tool for his task.

Carefully Robert cleaned it under the spray of warm water, after all he didn’t want to get blood poisoning from it considering it must have been lying there for months now.

But just when he had positioned the razor above the scar, ready to push the blade deep into it, a hand came out of nowhere and grabbed his wrist to stop him.

For a moment Robert expected it to be Thiago, but when he raised his head to look at the person’s reflection in the mirror, he saw another familiar figure and his breath caught in his throat.

“Please don’t do that, little one,” The Darkness told him in a soft yet firm voice.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so terribly sorry for the long wait. I just wrote so many other things that I kind of lost track of this one...  
> Dear Blue_Night, you wanted a new chapter, so here it is. I hope you will like it. The first half will be Robert, the second Thomas (and Marco). :)

 

**Chapter 3**

 

“Please don’t do that, little one.”

Robert froze upon hearing the all too familiar voice and for a moment he hoped that this was just a hallucination or some kind of twisted nightmare. But the grip around his wrist tightened as the man beside him made him drop his arm before using his free hand to take the razor out of his hand.

That’s when Robert finally dared to look at him and it was almost like looking into the mirror, seeing his own face staring back at him. But in a way this man still looked different from him, his eyes harder and no insecurity in his stance.  
“What are you doing here?” Robert asked, his eyes darting between the familiar face and the hand clutching the razor.

The Darkness carefully put it down next to the sink before raising his hands placatory. “Don’t worry, I have no intention of hurting you.”

“Oh yes, of course I believe that,” Robert spat back sarcastically, wondering briefly where his sudden courage came from.

“I know you don’t,” The Darkness replied. “But everything I ever wanted was to help you, Robert.”

“Help me?” Robert repeated and he felt anger rise inside of him. He took a step forward until he was only inches away from The Darkness and added, “All you ever did was bring pain, misery and death to my life.”

Robert had no idea what kind of reaction he had been expecting. An outburst, maybe fury. Certainly not the sad smile appearing on The Darkness’ face or the hand coming up to stroke along his jawbone tenderly.

“You’re wrong, little one. You made me because you needed somebody strong to protect you. I saved you the very first time when you took the overdose.”

Robert’s eyes widened in surprise. “You did? But I never heard you speaking to me until Cristiano showed up at my door shortly after.”

“Yes, I know. But I awoke when you first tried to end your life and I realized I couldn’t keep silent any longer. You were weak and you needed guidance.”

Robert shook his head vehemently. “No, you were just afraid that I would succeed in killing myself because then you would have died along with me. You’re just saving yourself.”

“You and I are one,” The Darkness told him with a proud smile. “And I will never let any harm come to you, not ever again. Not even from yourself. I’ve been forced into silence by your lover for far too long.”

Robert swallowed. “Marco was protecting me from you.”

“You talk as though I am the monster that has hurt you,” The Darkness replied and his smile was gone now. “But it was he who abused you for months to follow. He wasn’t protecting you, he was protecting himself from my wrath. And trust me, I would have avenged you. I would have made him suffer for what he did to you before I would have killed him.”

Robert surged forward, pushing the other man’s body against the wall and wincing at the pain that suddenly surged through his own back. “If you ever hurt Marco, I will make you pay, I promise you that!”

The Darkness smirked. “You can’t kill me, little one. I am a part of you and I always will be.”

“We’ll see about that when I have slit my throat,” Robert shot back and he knew he had hit home when he saw The Darkness tensing up at these words. There was a long moment of loaded silence between them before eventually the latter chuckled. “You threatening me, I have to admit that I would be proud of you if it wasn’t your life we were discussing.”

“What do you want?” Robert repeated his earlier question with a hint of annoyance in his voice. “And if you say that you want to help me one more time, I swear to God I will-“

“Alright, alright, calm down. If you want me to be selfish because you can’t handle that I truly care about you, then I’ll be that, selfish.” His expression softened a bit. “I want you to return to your present just as much as you do.”

Robert frowned. “Why?”

“Because I miss our lover as well,” The Darkness responded. “Thanks to Thomas you had just started to forgive yourself and see meaning in life again. And now that he is gone you’re falling back into the abyss.”

Robert had no idea how to respond to that. “Let’s say I believe you. How do you want to help me then?”

“You’re a powerful vessel, little one. I know your gift could help you find your way back to the men you love so much. But you’re not strong enough yet and that’s where I come into play.”

Robert took a step back as though he had been burnt. “I know what you’re trying to do. You want me to hand you the reigns of my body. But no matter what you say, I will never do that.”

The Darkness looked at him with an unreadable expression for several seconds. But suddenly Robert was pushed against the door with The Darkness’ hand around his throat, their fronts pressed tightly together.

“Do you really think I need your consent any longer?” His grip tightened and cut off Robert’s air supply. “Do you feel that? I am no longer trapped in your head, I am alive and free. The darker your thoughts are getting, the stronger I will become.” Then he leaned forward, his face only inches away from Robert’s. “You think I need you, Robert? No, you need me. The only reason I’m not trapping you inside of your own head is because you give me purpose.” His grip loosened a bit and Robert took deep breaths, feeling a bit dizzy. “You’re the light to my darkness, little one. We belong together and I would be nothing without you.”

The confession made him sound strangely vulnerable and threw Robert off completely. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because you need to understand that I’m not your enemy,” The Darkness responded calmly. “I’m the only one you can trust to put you first. Everyone has their own agenda, but mine will always be you.”

Suddenly there was a hesitant knocking on the door at Robert’s back.

“Robert?” It was Thiago. “Are you alright? I thought I heard something.”

Robert opened his mouth, but The Darkness once again tightened his grip around his throat to get his attention, his voice only a low whisper. “I told you I want to help you and I mean it. You like Thiago, don’t you? Well, what if I told that there is a way to find his brother?”

Robert’s eyes widened. “His brother?”

There was another knock and this time Thiago sounded more than just worried. “Robert, whom are you talking to?”

The Darkness smiled at him and it was a surprisingly genuine one. “You are the one who can find Rafa and reunite the two brothers. You can ease some of Thiago’s pain by finally giving him confirmation whether his brother is still alive or not. All you got to do is acquire a new ability.”

And then he was gone.

Robert slumped onto the floor, coughing hard and covered in sweat at the same time that Thiago tore open the door. “Robert, why didn’t you answer me? I was really getting worried.”

But then his eyes widened when he looked at Robert and the latter tensed, wondering briefly what was upsetting the Spaniard so much.

“What happened to your throat?”

Robert got back onto his feet and took a quick look into the mirror. There were visible imprints of the fingers that had choked him, but what looked even worse was the blood covering one half of his throat and shoulder and only now did Robert remember that he had reopened Thomas’ mark.

“It’s nothing, I just had a little accident and tripped in the shower.”

It was a poor excuse and clearly Thiago thought so too.

“It doesn’t look like an accident to me. Besides, I could hear you talking to somebody. Not to mention that I’m certain I could sense two gifted people in this room thanks to my own ability.”

Robert opened his mouth to respond, but he froze when he remembered what The Darkness had just told him. That he only needed to acquire a new ability to find Thiago’s brother. _This_ was it.

“Thiago, I think I just found a way to get your brother back.”

Thiago looked surprised before he shook his head in disbelief. “What are you even talking about? He has been gone for over a year now and not even the police have a clue where he is.”

“But I do,” Robert argued. “Well, I will after a bit of help from you.”

 

***

 

It turned out that Marco would be right, Thomas didn’t have another nightmare in the night following their decision to ask Erik Durm for help. Of course Thomas was still far from being alright, but he felt more alive than he had in months now that he had reason to hope again.

To hope that he would be with Robert again.

The last four months had definitely been the worst of his entire life and he missed Robert so badly, even more so because there was a small but insistent voice in his head that kept wondering if Robert even was still alive. What if he had tried to follow Thomas and Lionel through the portal while it was closing behind them and was now stuck or even died? What if something had happened to him in the past? While Thomas and Marco had been searching for a way to get Robert back, Bastian had tried to find some documents, records or anything of the kind that would indicate that a man by the name of Robert Lewandowski had lived in the last thirty years. But there was nothing. And that scared the hell out of Thomas…

He was driving on the highway, his fingers drumming impatiently against the steering wheel while his foot was almost flooring the gas pedal. He could Marco’s excitement even though the blond hadn’t said a single word since he had got into the backseat. Manuel was sitting in the passenger’s seat, his hand clutching the edges of his seat and eying Thomas nervously.

“Thomas, slow down please, you’re gonna get us killed.”

Thomas looked down at the speedometer and noticed that he was driving with more than 250 km/h. “Sorry,” he mumbled in apology which Manuel accepted with a shrug before reaching for the folder with Erik Durm’s file that Marco had previously handed him.  
“So, you think this guy will be able to help us?”

“He’s our best shot,” Thomas responded instantly.

“I just have my doubts that this will work. I mean, his powers must have boundaries. Either he can only cover a fixed range or perhaps he can’t find Robert at all because he is not living in this time any longer. I can’t believe that we’re just going to visit that guy and he will be able to tell us how to find Robert. It just sounds too easy.”

Finally Marco leaned forward, a dark glint to his eyes as they settled on Manuel. “Too easy? Thomas and I spent the last four months frantically searching for someone like Erik! Four months during which we almost lost our minds. Four months that Robert has been trapped into the past. And you think this was too easy?”

Manuel bit his lip at Marco’s outburst. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”

Even though Thomas agreed with Marco, he could feel sympathy for his friend. Manuel dropped his gaze to the folder in his hands and for the first time he opened it to read all the details himself. He had barely started reading, his eyes occasionally flicking to the picture of Erik clipped to it before all of a sudden, he dropped the folder and clutched his head hard.

“Manu?” Thomas asked alarmed.

“A vision,” Manu croaked out before his body went rigid, his whole body on alert while the images were bombarding his mind.

For a brief moment Thomas considered to stop the car, but Marco had already reached out for Manuel’s shoulder, the firm touch grounding the older man who had started trembling at whatever he was seeing.

“Should I try blocking the vision?” Marco asked Thomas quietly who was tempted to take him up on that offer and save his friend from another worry. But in the end he shook his head.  
“No, it could be something important.”

And so they waited. It took Thomas a lot of effort to keep his eyes on the road until eventually Manuel’s body slumped back into the seat and he gulped for air.

“Manu, are you alright?” Thomas asked at the same time that Marco demanded, “Tell us about your vision.”

For a long moment Manuel only stared ahead with wide eyes and Thomas knew instantly it had to be something bad. Finally Manuel turned towards them, focusing on Marco and his voice was hollow. “I saw you. And Robert.”  
Thomas heartbeat sped up, his relief threatening to crush him. There was a future where they would meet Robert again. Manuel’s visions had never been wrong and they for sure wouldn’t be now.

His hand reached for Marco’s and he could almost feel the blond’s excitement like an echo of his own. “What exactly did you see?”

“I saw you and Robert in bed together,” Manuel replied towards Marco after a moment and Thomas would have never thought that this sentence could ever be a relief to hear. But that was exactly what he was feeling now. Relief that Robert was still alive and they had confirmation that they would reunite. He shoved the thought away to focus on Manuel’s explanations.

“You were kissing and undressing each other, but then you made Robert stop.”

Marco frowned. “Why?”

“You told him that Thomas loves him.”

Thomas felt a small smile form on his lips, but Manuel’s next words erased it instantly.

“Robert’s response was ‘ _Yes, but I don’t love him. I may have done so once upon a time but not any longer. Those feelings are in the past now. You’re the only one for me, Marco, and I will never ever forget that_.’”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to wait with an update until I got some more comments, but this chapter is written and begging me to get posted, so here it is. Once again both perspectives, first Robert then Thomas feat. Marco.  
> Please comment and let me know your thoughts. :)

 

 

**Chapter 4**

 

“So how is this going to work?” Thiago asked curiously.

He, Javi and Robert had left the busy city in favor of the peaceful edge of the woods a few miles away. Thiago’s ability might be a less dangerous one than those Robert had acquired up to now, but he had the suspicion it would still be hard enough to deal with it. Under different circumstances Robert would be afraid, fearing that the voices in his head – The Darkness – would make him lose control.

The very first time he had acquired an ability, it was Cristiano’s and Robert had almost killed him had it not been for Mario’s and Marco’s support. The second time had just been a few weeks later, way too soon for him to cope with the additional power and it had cost not only Mario’s life but also started a chain reaction of horrible events for all of them… The third and last time was the only one that worked without Robert hurting somebody. When he had been training with Lionel, surrounded by their friends that could either guide him through this or stop him in case things threatened to spin out of control.

Now though Robert was the only one in charge and there was no one here who could have stopped him. But The Darkness had been the one to suggest he should try finding Rafa with his brother’s ability, so perhaps he would stay quiet this time. Robert didn’t like having to trust The Darkness, but there was no other choice if they wanted to find Rafa.

“Take my hand,” he ordered and Thiago obeyed instantly, his hand sweaty from excitement. Not that Robert could blame him. He had already made peace with the fact that he would never find out what happened to his brother and now they were going to search for him again.

He squeezed the younger man’s hand reassuringly. “We will find your brother, Thiago. I promise.”

Thiago smiled at him. “Even if we don’t, I’m still so grateful that you’re doing this for me. For us. Thank you, Robert. I won’t forget that.”

Robert drops his gaze then, a part of him afraid that he will fail and crush Thiago’s new hope. He shoves that thought away. “Concentrate on your ability now. I will try to join your mind, it may feel a bit strange at first.”

Thiago nodded and Robert closed his eyes, trying to sharpen his senses. Thiago’s ability was not as focused as Mario’s and Cristiano’s had been, no need for Robert to get inside of his victim’s mind. That made it a lot easier to go slow and gentle, reminding him of the time with Lionel whose ability was also more open. Robert’s hand around Thiago’s tightened as he dove into the electrifying mist of Thiago’s ability and he shuddered at the pain surging through him.

“Robert?” a distant voice asked in concern, apparently Javi, but he was too gone to respond as he fought his way to the center of Thiago’s mind.

The moment he reached it, the pain suddenly stopped and Robert was overwhelmed by the tingling in his mind.

This time he actually groaned and suddenly there was the feel of something hard and cold – the ground – underneath him. He had sunken to his knees, unable to shut his mind that was now open to his surroundings.

“Robert, what’s happening to you?” he heard Javi asking and even before he felt the hand on his shoulder, he knew that the Spaniard was approaching him from the intensifying of the tingling.

Because Javi had an ability. It had worked.

“We did it!” he exclaimed in a hoarse voice. It was followed by a pained gasp when another kind of tingling rubbed over his mind almost like sandpaper and a second later Thiago was clutching his arm.

“Are you alright?”  
Robert shook his head. “Just give me a few minutes to get it under control.”

They didn’t say anything yet they both let him go and took a few steps back. Robert took deep breaths, relieved to realize that it was working. The new sensations were ebbing down slowly and eventually the tingling became more like a background feeling.

When Robert was absolutely sure that nothing unforeseen would happen, he finally opened his eyes again. “I think I’m alright now.”

The two other men both heaved a sigh of relief before surging forward again to help him up. Thiago regarded Robert with something like awe in his eyes. “So you have my ability now?”

“An amplified version, yes. But I need to train it for a few more days or weeks before I will be able to search for your brother.”

“Of course,” Thiago responded. “Take all the time you need. I’ve waited for a year now, I can surely wait for a few days longer.”

Acquiring the new ability might have been a lot less complicated and dangerous than Robert previously expected, but he still felt so exhausted that he was half asleep by the time they had returned to Thiago’s and Javi’s house and the two men had steered Robert back into his bedroom.

The next thing Robert became aware of was awakening in his – or rather Rafa’s bed - with the afternoon sun coming in through the window. He felt as though he had been sleeping for years; rested but every part of his body aching from the long time he was stretched out on the bed.

There was still a tingling in his mind and at first Robert suspected his body was still struggling to cope with the new power, but then a voice came from the other side of the room.

“Welcome back among the living.”

He turned around to find a softly smiling Javi sitting in the chair next to the door, a book he had apparently been reading, in his hand.

“How long was I out?” Robert asked him and he had to cough at how dry his throat was.

“Three days,” Javi replied before he got up and took the glass of water from the nightstand, sitting down on the edge of the bed while he was handing it to Robert. “Please drink, you’re dehydrated.”

Robert obeyed and gulped down the whole glass in one go. “Where is Thiago?”

“He is out buying groceries,” Javi replied and suddenly his expression softened. “You know, I would like to thank you, Robert. For trying to help him find his brother.”

Robert swallowed hard. “We don’t know yet what happened to him. He could be dead.”

"Yes, but at least Thiago has confirmation then. He may tell himself that he has accepted that possibility, but I know him too well to let the façade fool me. He still wonders. Every single day he wonders if his brother could still be alive.”

Robert felt a lump forming in his throat as he wondered if Thomas and Marco felt the same. If they thought him dead or were trying to accept that he was gone for good. His chest ached with how much he missed them and he unconsciously raised his hand to the reopened mark on his throat. It was already healing again, but the touch was still painful and grounding him. The fingers of his free hand twitched with the urge to search for a tool sharp enough to also reopen another wound. One that was so old that there was no pain as he touched it now, his fingertips trailing over the large scar on his collarbone.

“Robert?”

Javi’s voice brought him back into the present and he blinked to focus on the man in front of him.

“Sorry,” he said apologetically before finally getting up from the bed and stretching his stiff muscles.

“I would like to start training right now. But I’d like to wait for Thiago, I’m sure he can give me some tips since it is his ability anyway.”

Javi nodded. “Sounds like a plan. But first you need to eat something. My boyfriend will have my head on a stick if he finds out that I didn’t try to fatten you up a bit.”

Robert chuckled. “Alright, I don’t want to be responsible for that kind of drama in your relationship. I’m actually very hungry anyway. Do you have some eggs? I’d die for eggs right now.”

“Follow me,” Javi replied and the two of them smiled at each other as they made their way to the kitchen in order to raid the fridge.

By the time Thiago returned, Robert was in good spirits and had even started to use his new ability a bit by trying to locate Javi who kept hiding at various places in the whole street. Thiago soon joined in and by the end of the day Robert was finally starting to let their optimism transfer to him. For the meantime he had found a purpose, a way to give something back to Thiago and Javi for the never-ending kindness they had shown him.

Robert was sure he would be able to find Rafinha Alcántara. He would bring him home to his family...

 

***

 

By the time the three of them finally arrived in Dortmund, it was already early afternoon and it was pelting down with rain mercilessly.

Thomas took another look at the address that was listed on the folder, just to be sure. “This is it. Erik Durm’s home.”

It was a multi-storied house a few minutes away from the middle of the city and it actually looked like a nice, peaceful neighborhood there.

Thomas had parked the car a few houses further down the street and he was soaked by the time they were standing in front of their actual destination. He stared at the numerous name tags beside the front door and there, the left one in the second line was the name he had been looking for.

Erik Durm.

Thomas felt a lump forming in his throat as he reached out to press the button for the door bell and he hesitated for a moment, looking up at Marco who was watching him with a strange expression, a mix of grim determination, relief and fear that Thomas could relate to. They had never been so close to getting Robert back and it felt surreal that their suffering would soon be over. Manuel was watching them silently while Marco reached out, his hand overlapping Thomas' above the button. His expression was gentler than Thomas had ever seen, his fingertips stroking the back of Thomas' hand comfortingly.

“Come on, Thomas. It's time we finally get our lover back.”

Thomas smiled and he had the sudden urge to kiss Marco, but he ignored that impulse. Instead he finally rang the bell.

The three men kept waiting for more than a minute, but nothing happened, not even after the second ringing.

“Maybe he is not home?” Manuel suggested after a moment.

Thomas didn't really believe that and he took a step to the P.O. boxes at the side. When he saw the one that belonged to Erik, he pushed the lid to risk a glance inside. It was stuffed with letters and advertisements as though it hadn't been emptied for a while.  
“I don't think he has been home lately.”

Before Marco or Manuel could respond, the door suddenly opened and they found a tall man with longer brown hair looking at them curiously, the keys to his car in one hand and a sports jacket thrown over his arm. He looked startled to see them.

“Can I help you guys?”

Manuel nodded instantly. “Yes, actually. We are searching for Erik Durm.”

The man's smile dropped. “Oh.”

Thomas tensed and he glanced at Marco who had frozen as well, both of them fearing what that little word meant.

The man opened the door wider and waved them inside. “You should come in, I guess. That's not something I would like to discuss when somebody could be listening.”

They followed him into the hallway and then up the stairs. The guy unlocked a door with the name tag 'Neven Subotić' and they followed him into the small apartment.

“Just make yourself comfortable. Can I get you something to drink?”

“Nothing for me,” Thomas and Marco replied in unison while Manuel said, “Just a glass of water, thank you.”

As soon as Neven has returned and handed the glass to Manuel, he sits down at the table with a troubled expression.

“I guess you are friends of Erik?”

“Something like that,” Marco responded as he straightened again, refusing to sit down and instead standing behind Manuel with his arms crossed in front of him. He practically radiated anxiousness, but Thomas wasn't off much better either.

Still, he sat down beside Manuel as Neven added, “I guess you know about his special skills then?”

Thomas nodded. “Yes, we know that he has a very special ability. Because we are just like him.”

Neven didn't look very surprised about that. “I already suspected as much. Truth to be told, Erik is gone.”

Thomas stared at Neven in disbelief. “What do you mean he is gone?”

“The official story is that he was involved in drug dealing and that's why the police detained him.”

“And what is the truth?” Thomas asked, knowing that there was more to this story.

Neven didn't disappoint. “I don't know for sure. They came in the middle of the night, a dozen men, armed as though they wanted to take down a terrorist. They were quiet and I only realized what was happening when I heard Erik shouting. I saw them dragging his unconscious body outside and into one of their vehicles before they left again. I asked their leader what they were doing and that's when he told me about the drug thing. Though it seemed rather ridiculous that there would be so many men abducting Erik in the middle of the night.”

They fell silent then and Thomas sunk back into his chair, feeling miserable. Not only was their hope to get Robert back in vain now. No, one of their kind had also been kidnapped. Not again.

Manuel shook his head. “This shouldn't be happening. Iker is dead. We were supposed to be safe.”

Thomas turned his head at the sound of Marco's cursing and he found the blond pacing the room, his hands clenched to fists in frustration. “We need to find Erik.”

“And where do we start searching?” Manuel retorted impatiently.

Before Marco could reply though, Neven coughed loudly. “I still have the spare keys to Erik's apartment if you want to go in there and search for hints yourselves.”

They got up instantly and as soon as Neven had got the keys, they crossed the hallway to the door at the other end of it.

Thomas had no idea what he hoped to find there, but maybe there was some kind of hint regarding Erik's whereabouts or something else that could be helpful. He knew deep down that it was wishful thinking, but he shoved that thought away. The four men entered the apartment hesitantly with Manuel and Neven stopping as soon as they had crossed the threshold and looking around aimlessly.

Marco however instantly headed for the first room - the living room – and there was something manic in his eyes as he started to rummage around.

“Marco?” Thomas asked worriedly and he approached the blond warily. He knew this expression. Marco was starting to lose hope again.

“This can't be happening,” Marco murmured and it was hard to tell whether he was talking to Thomas or himself. “Erik was supposed to help us get Robert back. And now he is gone!”

Carefully Thomas grabbed him by the shoulders. “Listen to me. Erik is not dead, so all we got to do is find out where he is held captive and get him out of there.”

“But Iker and Sergio are dead, so why did some guys still kidnap Erik?” Marco retorted and he was almost shouting now.

“I don't know,” Thomas replied. Marco was right, all of this didn't make any sense, but not all hope was lost yet. He raised his hands to cup Marco's face and leaned forward until their foreheads were touching and there was no way for the blond to avoid his gaze.

“Marco, please. You need to calm down. We need to find Erik before it is too late, that's the only thing important right now. We can't afford to break down because of this one setback already.”

Marco took a deep breath and some of the tension left his shoulders. “You're right, I'm sorry.”

Thomas smiled. “It's alright, I feel just as desperate and frustrated as you do.”

Marco didn't look convinced. “You appear a lot more collected and calm than I am.”

“Well, I have to,” Thomas replied after a moment. “I have to in order to convince you as well as myself that we will succeed. That doesn't mean I don't have my doubts.”

“You're trying to be strong for me,” Marco concluded and he sounded torn, as though he wasn't sure how to feel about this.

Thomas' smile became sad. “I promised him I would take care of you.”

Marco froze and they both looked at each other for a long moment when all of a sudden there was a strange sound coming from the door. A loud thump like a body tumbling to the ground. It was followed by hurried footsteps and when Marco and Thomas turned their heads they found several armed policemen entering the rum, their firearms pointed at them.

Behind them a man in his late thirties strode in, wearing a long black coat that suited his black hair and made him look even taller than he already was.

“Thank you for alarming us, Mr. Subotić. We have been searching for these three men for quite a while now. They are a danger for everybody and we will take them with you.”

Marco took a step to the side and Thomas got the hint. He unleashed his fire, but before he could even think of directing it at someone, one of the men had fired. He jerked at the tranquilizer dart that pierced the skin at his throat and a moment later he felt Marco's arms around him as the blond caught him before he hit the ground.

“Thomas!” he heard Marco shout, but it sounded distant.

Thomas tried to keep his eyes open for a moment longer and he saw Marco getting shot as well before the man in the coat walked over towards them and knelt between them.

“You two will tell me what happened with Iker. Sweet dreams, we will see each other again when you have woken up.”

A second later Thomas gave in and he fell into unconsciousness...


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all I need to apologize for taking so long with updating this story. This series is very dear to me and I wanted to carefully plan everything out before advancing with the plot of this story and so I had wanted to finish some other stories/series first. I kept telling myself that I should first finish this or that before returning to 'Shards of a Broken Hourglass', but I have realized that the right moment for continuing this story will never come. I will always have too many WIPs to handle and too many ideas waiting to get written down.  
> I have always had the tendency to get inspired for stories that are not in my time plan at all, just like it was the case here. I had four other things to write for, but made the mistake of re-reading some of the comments I received on LtROI and later reading the story itself. I have to admit that I had completely forgotten that my last update ended on such a cliffhanger; I have acted out the scene where Thomas and Marco are waking up so many times that I was sure I had written and posted that part already. This definitely deserves another apology from my part!  
> However this new chapter will not contain Thomas' perspective, because Robert's part became so long and already had a lot of information to take in. I hope you won't be disappointed and the length makes up for it. :-)

 

 

 

**Chapter 5**

 

It was almost four weeks later when Robert finally deemed himself stable as well as strong enough to try tracking Rafael down. It had been straining weeks full of training and meditation, something that Robert had become familiar with over the last two to three years. Lionel had taught him some useful mediation techniques while Cristiano had preferred to train Marco and Mario in physical combat.

Javi and Thiago though were completely new to this because both of them had never had any reason to train their abilities. There had simply never been any need to. So there was no one to supervise Robert and tell him when he would finally be ready to take on his task. But after twenty-five days full of training with Thiago had passed, Robert knew that he was ready to start their search. Even Thiago had been impressed by how amplified Robert’s copied ability was. Even though when he wasn’t using it actively, he could still feel Thiago and Javi approaching from two miles away. And if he truly concentrated, he was able to pick up on traces of them and track them down, perhaps a side-effect of having acquired Lionel’s ability prior.

Now the three of them were standing in Rafael’s room, the place where they would be starting their search. Thiago was clearly anxious, his hope to find his brother tinged with doubt. “I still can’t quite believe that this will work. Rafael has been gone for so long, it’s hard to believe that there are still traces of him left in here.”

Javi smiled before putting one arm around him and pulling him closer. “It won’t be easy, but it’s not impossible. You have seen what Robert is capable of. If anyone will be able to do it, then it is him.”

Thiago returned his smile and raised himself to his tiptoes to put a soft kiss to his boyfriend’s lips. The affectionate gesture made Robert’s heart ache, reminding him of his own two lovers that were lost to him forever. The thought still hurt as much as it did the first time and he had to turn his face away from his friends, unable to look at them any longer even though he was happy for them. Therefore he was surprised when a moment later arms were coming around his waist and he was pulled against Thiago’s smaller body. “It’s going to be alright, Robert. You will find a way to return home into your own time and be reunited with your friends. You are a good man and you deserve to find happiness in the end.”  
Robert wanted to argue, but eventually decided against it. Thiago had been adamant on telling him this multiple times and he simply refused to believe Robert whenever the latter tried to make him see that he was far from good, that he had killed one of his best friends and was responsible for the death of another innocent man. It was his fault that Mario and Philipp were dead and this was something that would always tarnish his soul. But Javi and especially Thiago clearly disagreed and Robert had eventually given up on trying to change their minds. A small part of him had even started to believe them.

He allowed Thiago’s embrace for a few seconds longer before pulling back, feeling slightly better indeed. “It’s time now.”

Thiago and Javi nodded, both of them tense as they watched Robert starting to concentrate. At first the only thing Robert could feel were his two friends, their presence increasingly painful to him the more he broadened his range. The first traces of gifted persons entering this room were of course his own and Thiago’s because both of them were moving about this room every day. Soon all he could sense were imprints of Thiago and Javi from the time before Robert had entered their lives and soon Robert felt numb, from both exhaustion of using the ability as well as oversensitivity from those two traces constantly rubbing over his mind. He had no idea how much time had already passed by the time he finally picked up something new. Robert had been close to giving up for today, his head pounding hard from the force of his headache and feeling as though he was going to vomit any second now. But then all of a sudden there was a new imprint and instinctively he reached out with his mind to grasp it, afraid to lose it again. The trace had a higher density and seemed stronger than even those of Thiago and Javi put together. Therefore it hurt Robert’s sore mind a lot more, but was also easier to track down. He finally opened his eyes, realizing that several hours must have passed since he had last spoken to his two friends because both of them were sitting on the edge of the bed now, looking up at him attentively while the afternoon sun was shining into the room.

“I have found Rafa’s trace,” Robert announced and both of them surged upwards instantly with excitement written all over their faces.

“Where does it lead to?” Javi asked him.

Robert turned around, following the trace he could see before his mind’s eye out of the house with the two Spaniard in tow. “It is leading away from the centre of the city,” Robert concluded as he watched the red power stream disappear at the end of the street. Now that he had finally found Rafael’s trace, it became increasingly harder to stay focused on that one particular day, even older traces lurking behind the shields that Robert had learned to construct around the edges of his conscience to prevent all kinds of traces from crushing him.

He flinched when Thiago grabbed his arm and pushed him toward Javi’s car, the physical touch irritating him after so many hours of mental pain. Nevertheless he allowed the younger man to push him onto the passenger’s seat before he sat down in the back, Javi getting into the driver’s seat and starting the engine.

Robert could feel the excitement radiating off Thiago, the anticipation of finally seeing his beloved brother again and it gave him the strength to carry on even though he could feel his last bit of strength fading fast, unconsciousness already lurking at the edges an hour after they had left Madrid behind.

“To the right,” he whispered and Javi obeyed instantly. Robert groaned as he sank deeper into the seat, his vision starting to become blurry.

“Robert?” Thiago asked worriedly from the back, but Robert was already too gone to answer him. At least that’s what he thought. But just when he was about to pass out, he could feel a sudden boost of energy and he heard a familiar voice in his head.

_Hold on to me, Robert._

“No,” Robert uttered, trying to force the voice into the back again.

_Just a bit longer. We are almost there, I promise you._

Robert whimpered but gave up his fight, allowing the surge of strength which The Darkness seemed to be sending him. He gasped at the electrifying feeling of power surging through his veins, his vision clearing again.

“Robert, what’s wrong?” Thiago asked from behind him. “Javi, stop the car!”

“No!” Robert argued urgently. “I’m fine, more than fine actually. Just keep going.”

Javi shared a doubtful look with Thiago but did as he was told. Robert closed his eyes when he realized that The Darkness was not only feeding him his own energy but also amplifying his ability, Robert’s shields quaking from the onslaught of sensations.

“It’s enough,” he whispered through clipped teeth. “Please stop it, I can’t take anymore.”

To his surprise the power stream cut off immediately and he slumped back into his seat, his head spinning from switching extremes so fast. At the same time there was something akin to a soothing touch in his mind and the voice was back.

_I’m sorry, little one. But you will need as much strength as possible to last until we have found Thiago’s brother. It will fade with time._

Before Robert could have responded to it, Javi had gripped his shoulder. “Are you alright, Robert? You spaced out for a moment.”

“I’m fine,” Robert repeated, but it came out sounding more like a question. The Darkness had just helped him even though this might have been a great opportunity to take the reins from Robert. Because that was what he had wanted all along, right? To take over the body that they shared and force Robert into the back of his mind, so no one could stop him from gaining more power. Then why had he not taken this opportunity? Robert had been able to feel his surprising strength and he knew with terrifying certainty that The Darkness would have come out on top. It wasn’t making any sense at all.

He shook his head, trying to rid himself of his thoughts. He could ponder about this later, there were important things at hand right now. “We are almost there, I can feel it. Just follow this street.”

Javi nodded and after a moment the car accelerated again. Robert could feel Thiago watching him and when he turned back, he could see the younger man eying him warily. “What is it?”

“I’m not sure,” Thiago responded. “But I could suddenly feel another presence in this car. You, Javi, me and somebody else. The same person I could feel on the day we took you in, when I found you injured in the bathroom.”

Robert paled. Of course Thiago was right, but it was one thing to admit that The Darkness was whispering into his ear again and something completely else when other people could feel him as well. It meant that The Darkness was no longer trapped in Robert’s mind, just like he had claimed all these weeks ago. He was just as real as Robert was. Even though it was hard to understand how he could be a real, corporal being without being actually there with them, in his own body. “It is nothing to worry about,” he tried to soothe Thiago. “I have got it under control.”

“Got what under control?” Thiago asked and he reached out to touch Robert’s arm.

The latter let it happen, accepting the encouraging gesture but knowing that he could never tell Thiago and Javi the truth. They were the only friends he had after he had been cut off from the world he had known his entire life and he could not deal with losing them too.

He was saved from having to answer though when he felt a new conscience brush his mind, someone like them walking around the area. And it was not Rafael.

“There is another gifted person here,” Robert informed his friends. “They must have an astonishing power considering I could feel them through my shields. He is heading into the opposite direction. Quick, Javi, turn the car around.”

Javi however shook his head. “No, we are not here to find other people like us. Thiago has also picked up on a handful of them over the years he has been living here, but decided to let them lead a peaceful life. Our focus is on Rafa, remember?”

Robert was shocked by his own selfishness. For a moment his curiosity about another one of them had gotten the better of him and he had almost forgotten why there were here. “Of course, you’re right. I’m sorry.”

They fell silent then except for Robert’s instructions and five minutes later they reached the end of the trace.

“The river?!” Thiago said as they stood at the momentarily empty pier, staring over the many little passenger ships and cargo boats in the port. “Why would it end here?”

The first thing that came to Robert’s mind was that Rafael might have jumped into the water here, attempting to take his own life. According to Thiago he had been struggling with his ability oftentimes and seen it as a curse rather than a gift, a sentiment Robert could understand very well. But there were a lot of other, less painful ways to kill themselves than drowning.

Javi was the one to voice the only alternative. “Rafa must have got onto a boat that was at anchor here.”

Thiago frowned. “My brother loved me, he would have never left without telling me. You think he could have been kidnapped?”

“It’s possible I guess,” Robert replied even though he doubted it. Rafael had been alone in his room and most likely come here to the port out of his own free will. There had been nothing to indicate any violence which also left an imprint as Robert knew best. Of course Rafael could have been blackmailed to go on board though, but he didn’t believe that for some reason.

Robert turned to Thiago. “We will have to google which boats or ships have been here at this pier the day and where they were heading.” Only when he saw the uncomprehending gaze of Thiago and the just as clueless look Javi was giving him, did he remember which time exactly he was in. Google would only get invented approximately ten years from now.

“I meant is there a way to find out about all the boats that have landed here last year, a list perhaps?”

Thiago turned around then and was quickly heading towards one of the boat houses where an elderly man was sitting at the desk and writing down some data onto a piece of paper.

Robert was the one to approach him. “Excuse me, sir. I’m looking for a ship that has landed on pier number thirteen one year ago. Is it possible to consult the records containing all boats and ships that have been here around that time?”

The man looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. “I’m not allowed to give you that information, young man.”

Anger filled Robert but before he could respond Thiago had stepped forward as well. “Please sir! It’s about my brother, he has gone missing one year ago and all we know is that he was here at this pier on the day he disappeared. I need your help in finding him.”

The man swallowed hard, his eyes filling with regret. “I’m very sorry to hear that, but I can’t give you that kind of information. Why don’t you ask the police to help you?”

Thiago bit his lip. He knew just as well as Javi and Robert did that the police would only open this case again if they had a valid, new clue. Which they hadn’t. The only reason they knew about Rafael having been in this port was Robert’s ability and that was nothing they could say to the policemen.

Thiago hang his head, all the hope that had been building up inside of him over the last few weeks crashing down again. The sight made Robert’s heart ache with sympathy and before he knew what he was doing, he had leaned over the desk, eyes trained firmly on the old man before breaking through his weak natural shields and invading his mind.

It had been a long time since Robert had last used Cristiano’s ability to influence minds, but it came still as easy to him. He had never used it on an ordinary human before and the lack of mental protection those minds seemed to have took him by total surprise. Without much effort he had reached the thoughts of this man and was able to twist them. He leaned closer, captivating the man’s unseeing gaze with his own. “You will show my friend all the records for pier thirteen from May last year. And as soon as this door has closed behind us, you will forget about this whole encounter.”

He drew back from the man’s mind and instantly the latter blinked, his eyes roaming through the room disorientated before he got up and walked over to one of the shelves behind him. He pulled out one of the folders labelled May 1985 and began skimming through the pages for the next few minutes.

Robert watched him closely, but he could feel Javi’s and Thiago’s amazed gazes on him. “I didn’t know you could do that,” the latter whispered in awe to which Robert shrugged. “I don’t like to use this ability, but it comes in handy sometimes.”

 _And we needed to use it for Thiago’s sake,_ he thought to himself.

“Here!” the man announced. “This is the list of all registered boats and ships from the time you have requested, sir.”

Thiago surged forward, pulling the book from the man’s hands and staring down at the list. “Rafa disappeared on the 18 th  May, so this is most likely the day we should start searching.”

However the list for that day still contained two pages of names, all of them cargo ships. Thiago sighed. “Where do we start searching now? It will take us months to track down all of these ships and if someone really kidnapped Rafa, then he will have surely covered his tracks.”

Javi reached out, grabbing Thiago by his shoulders. “Hey, don’t give up hope yet. We have never been so close to finding your brother, we are not going to back down now. Right, Robert?”

Robert nodded even though he had no idea either how to narrow down the many possibilities. He could barely stand to look at Thiago and see his crestfallen expression that did not even vanish when Javi pulled him into his arms and put a kiss to his forehead. Robert turned his eyes away from the couple and looked back down at the list, letting his eyes roam over all the names and figures.

_Concentrate, Robert. You can find out who took Rafa with him._

Robert blinked several times, trying hard to silence the voice in his head. Most times he wasn’t sure whether the little voice was his own or that of The Darkness, but not this time. With how strong it echoed in his head and made his temples throb with pain, he knew that it was The Darkness trying hard to get his attention.

 _Shut up!_ Robert retorted even though he knew it was no use.

He could feel The Darkness’ becoming increasingly annoyed by his stubbornness. _I know you are afraid of trusting me, little one. But you will have to if you want to reunite your dear friend with his little brother. What would Thiago say if he knew that you are closing your eyes to a way to find his beloved Rafa? What would he say to you denying him his happiness?_

Robert tensed. The Darkness might have his own agenda, but his words were true nevertheless. Thiago was suffering so much and Robert might be able to help him. That was much more important than his fear right now.

He swallowed hard. _You’re right, you might be able to help him. But I will not allow you to take me over._

The Darkness didn’t seem to be surprised at all. _I’m not asking you to hide behind my back. I’m asking you to let me step forward until we are side by side. And once we are done and have found the right ship, I will retreat again._

Robert hesitated for a long moment. _You will only help us finding that ship. You won’t hurt Thiago, Javi or anyone else for that matter._

He would have expected The Darkness to be amused by his worries, but instead he replied with conviction. _As I said, you and I will do this side by side. It means you will have the possibility to stop me, should you want me to._

That would have to do. Robert dropped his inner wall of shields, the ones keeping The Darkness at bay and he felt a rush of electrifying energy similar to the one in the car. Suddenly his body felt too small and fragile to contain them both and instinctively he tried to fight back.

 _Don’t, Robert!_ The Darkness advised him. _I know it’s strange but you just have to take a few breaths and relax, then it will get easier._

Robert did as he was told, very aware of the way his conscience was not any longer separated from his counterpart. In a way they were inhabiting their body side by side, just like The Darkness had explained it, but wherever their consciences touched, they had intertwined, holding each other in place. Robert was careful to stay away from this part of his mind because the closer he came to it, the harder it was to distinguish between which thoughts were his own and which belonged to The Darkness.

The latter made them lean forward, scanning the list carefully and Robert flinched when all of a sudden he could feel a distant tingling at the back of his mind. They stopped there and read the name of the ship aloud.  
“MV Explorer. Cargo ship. Owner: Marc Bartra.”

Thiago looked at them with wide eyes. “You believe he is the one we are searching for? But how could you possibly know this, Robert? Another one of your skills?”

It was The Darkness who responded. “We know because he is one of us. He has a gift and when we amplified your ability further, we were able to sense that.”

Thiago and Javi shared a worried look before the latter asked, “Who is ‘we’?”

The Darkness waited for Robert’s reaction, clearly not sure whether the latter wanted to tell them about his alter ego or not. Robert took to answering the question then. “It’s not important, just let us find out where Mr. Bartra currently is and talk to him.”

The old man cleared his throat. “Actually Marc has checked in here yesterday. He will be staying at pier five until late evening, so if you hurry up you will be able to catch him before the Explorer leaves port again.”

Thiago turned around and hurried out of the room, Javi and Robert following close behind as they headed for pier five. Robert could feel The Darkness slowly retreating, leaving him the one in charge of their shared body, but he was still there lurking in the background. When they reached the pier they had been searching for, they found a small cargo ship anchored there and a handful of men making last preparations before they would set sail.

“Excuse me,” Thiago said to the first man he reached. “Could you tell me where I might find Mr. Bartra?”

The man pointed to his colleague behind him who gave the three of them a curious look. He was a handsome young man around their age, with tanned skin, dark brown hair and striking green eyes. Robert gasped at the strong jolt going through his body as he realized that Marc Bartra indeed had a gift, just like The Darkness had suspected. At the same time Robert recognized that his aura was familiar; it was the one he had been able to feel in Javi’s car.

Marc gave Thiago a curious look. “How can I help you?”

“It’s about my brother. He has gone missing one year ago and we believe that he went aboard your ship right before he disappeared.”

Marco frowned, his gaze turning wary. “You must be mistaken. I deliver goods, not people.”

Thiago pulled out a photo of himself and Rafael out of his pocket. “Please just take a look. This is my brother. Are you sure you haven’t seen him before?”

Marc inspected the photo for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. “I’m sorry, but he doesn’t look familiar to me.”

 _Liar,_ The Darkness whispered and Robert had to agree. He could sense that Marc knew more than he let on. He put his hand onto Thiago’s shoulder, eyes trained firmly on Marc’s face to watch his reaction. “You don’t have to lie to us, Marc. We are like you, we all have a gift.”

Marc’s eyes widened in disbelief. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”

For the first time Javi spoke up. “My friends are telling you the truth. You don’t have to be afraid of us. I can proof it to you.”

He reached out and touched Marc’s arm. The latter flinched at the contact, but suddenly he froze and it took Robert longer than it should have to notice that _this_ was Javi’s ability.

 _He is able to paralyze people_ , The Darkness observed in awe.

The only thing that indicated that Marc was a living being was the rise and fall of his chest, otherwise he was unable to move his body, not even his eyes that were staring straight ahead.

Javi dropped his hand back to his side after a few seconds, but it took almost a minute until the effect had worn off and Marc was able to move again. He just stared at the taller man for a long moment, clearly overwhelmed by what had just happened to him. Then he slowly turned towards Robert and Thiago. “And you two have abilities too?”

Thiago nodded. “Yes. I can feel when people like us are in the area while Robert is able to copy and enhance the abilities of others. What’s yours?”

Marc sighed, a sad look entering his eyes. “Nothing good I’m afraid. You really want to know what happened to your brother?”

When Thiago nodded, Marc finally started to explain. “My name is rather popular among the very few people who share our fate. When they talk about me, they call me ‘The Last Resort’ because they only come to me when they see no other way.”

“That sounds rather ominous,” Javi remarked.

“But the name suits me I guess,” Marc responded. “Rafael Alcántara came to me because he was tired of being a threat for others, he just wanted to be ordinary. I managed to change his mind and prevent him from doing something he might regret later, but it seems like he still didn’t want to be found, choosing to start his new life without leaving his family and loved ones a message.”

Thiago frowned. “What do you mean with ‘a new life’? My brother would have never left willingly without saying goodbye to me at least.”

“I didn’t know him very well, so I can’t judge his character. All I can do is telling you about his plans, but not here where everybody could hear us. Let’s get inside.” He turned to the gangway leading towards the boat and extended his hand to Thiago in a silent invitation. The smaller one grabbed it instantly, allowing Marc to help him aboard before Javi followed them. When Marc extended his hand to Robert though, the latter felt The Darkness pushing to the forefront of his mind again.

_Don’t touch him, little one! His power is dangerous._

Robert hesitated before ignoring the warning and grabbing the offered hand. He could feel the power of Marc’s ability and there was something terrifying about it, something cold and vicious, so unlike the pulsing warm energies that Robert had come to know. It stood in stark contrast to the kind aura this man was radiating in general, leaving Robert confused.

_Marc seems to be a good person but his power is evil._

Once again he wasn’t completely sure whether this conclusion was his own or it had come from The Darkness. He shoved the worrisome thought away and allowed Marc to lead them to the abandoned other side of the boat. There he rested his arms on the railing and continued his tale.

“My ability is that I can take away another person’s ability by touching them with my hands.” Robert gasped and he could see that Javi and Thiago were just as shocked by this revelation, but they kept quiet to hear the rest of the story. “Rafa had heard about what I can do and we met up here. He claimed that he wanted his ability gone because he would only hurt a lot of people in the end. Most of the persons seeking my help have similar reasons, but not all of them go through with it. I don’t like to erase somebody else’s gift and fortunately most people change their minds after I have talked to them. However there are also a few who are adamant on getting rid of their gift. And there also the very few ones in between, unwilling to throw away the gift God gave them but also unwilling to live their life with the constant fear of hurting somebody. In the end Rafa turned out to be one of those people.”

Robert could understand why some people might feel that way. He had loathed his ability and the voice in his head that had become stronger over time, but then he had met Thomas and he had seen that it didn’t have to be this way. Thomas had the ability of healing injuries, a gift that suited his kind but strong nature. There was nothing malevolent about him, a bright light in a world full of hatred and evil. Robert had tried not to let his love into his heart, convinced that he would hurt Thomas just like he had hurt every other person he had cared about, but in the end he had surrendered to the force of Thomas' love.

He might have lost Thomas, but their love had changed him forever. Before they had met Robert had thought his life meant nothing and that he deserved to die. That was not the case any longer now. He wanted to live.

 _And to be reunited with the ones you love,_ The Darkness added softly and Robert didn't even try to argue that point. There was no use in denying the obvious; Marco and Thomas had become the two suns of his solar system and even though it was highly unlikely that they would ever get to see each other again, Robert had to hold on to this hope. Just like Thiago was holding on to his hope of finding his missing brother; a hope against all odds that was now within their grasp.

Thiago's voice brought him out of his musing. “If you didn't take away my brother's ability, then what happened to him and why didn't he return home?”

For the first time Marc's little smile became genuine. “There is a place for the ones wanting to embrace their gift but not wanting to go back to their old lives. A place where they belong.” He made a meaningful pause. “I brought your brother there. So you have no need to worry about him, he should be absolutely fine. He is with friends.”

They let that sink in for a moment before determination entered Thiago's eyes. “How do we get there?”

Marc didn't look surprised at all. “I can take you there if you want me to. We have to sail down the _Tajo_ river through the rest of Spain and then Portugal until we reach Lisbon. My boyfriend owns a private jet and he will be able to pick you up and take you to Warsaw where our contact man is living.”

Javi's eyes widened. “We will be heading to Poland?”

Robert smiled. “Seems like I have to teach you two some Polish words then.” He turned to Marc then. “Please take us there. We need to find Rafa, no matter what the cost.”

Marc nodded. “Then you guys should pack some stuff and come back here. We will be leaving port in approximately four hours.”

 

It was only six hours later when Robert had lain down on the cot in the room Marc had assigned him to and closed his eyes, feeling totally drained from the day's events that he felt a pair of arms coming around his middle and a lean body pressing against his back. When Robert turned around, he wasn't surprised to find his own face staring back at him. “How can you be here with me?”

The Darkness smiled softly. “I'm not as corporal as I look like. No one but you can see me.”

Robert believed him, but it was still strange because he could feel The Darkness' body everywhere they touched. “So you're just inside my head?”

The Darkness tilted his head with a hint of amusement. “Yes, but that doesn't make me any less real.”

Robert turned around until he was facing The Darkness completely, the latter's arm over his middle now the only point left where they were touching. “I didn’t think you would allow me back to the surface.”

To his surprise The Darkness didn’t seem to be angered at all. Instead he laughed fondly before pulling Robert tighter against his chest.  
“I would never do that, little one. I know what it is like to be living in the prison of your own mind. Marco kept me trapped inside of you, forced to watch you getting hurt and abused for many months. I was fighting but I could do nothing to help you. I would never hurt you that way. You are the person most dear to me and your mind is much too beautiful to get trapped inside of my own. One day we will become one but it will happen out of your own free will. One day you will embrace me, little one, and I will patiently wait for that day to come.”

Robert wanted to argue, but The Darkness put a finger to his lips. “Hush now, let’s not fight! You had a straining day and you are exhausted. Sleep now. Nothing bad will happen to you tonight. Not even me, I promise you that.”

Robert didn’t know why he trusted The Darkness to keep his word. Perhaps it was because he believed his dark side when it claimed that it wanted Robert to surrender willingly. So he allowed himself to succumb to sleep in the arms of The Darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not to spoil anything, but well, we are heading to Poland, so you should expect some familiar faces to appear very soon... :-)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My dear mariothellama, kaenmoonlight and Blue_Night,  
> Thank you so much for your excited comments under the last chapter which showed me there are still people caring about this story, I was seriously wondering about that. I can assure you I wouldn't have been able to update so soon if it hadn't been for your wonderful feedback!
> 
> My dear readers,  
> If you're still reading and liking this story, please let me know. The feedback for this series has decreased drastically, the last few chapters only receiving comments and kudos from a few very devoted readers. I'm a full-time worker and writing a new chapter takes many hours, especially with this one because it is so complex and I constantly need to be careful not to mess up a tiny little detail of my universe. A short comment telling me that you like the new chapters would already boost my motivation and show me this story is still appreciated.
> 
> This chapter only contains Thomas' perspective which was not planned at all. But it has already become so long and we had a whole Robert chapter last time, so I hope you can forgive me.

 

 

 

**Chapter 6**

 

Thomas could feel himself drifting back to the surface and awakening slowly. He must have been sleeping for a very long time because his body was stiff when he tried to stretch and it took Thomas an unusual long time to open his eyes. He groaned against the bright light above him, turning his head away to protect his sensitive eyes, but then a shadow was looming above him and he heard a familiar voice.

“Please wake up, Thomas.”

Thomas opened his eyes again and after a short moment he was able to focus and recognize Marco’s face above his own. “Where are we?” he croaked out when the memory of the stranger and both of them getting shot down returned to him.

He allowed Marco to pull him up into a sitting position and it was only then that he realized he was lying in a small bed with Marco sitting beside him. “I’m not sure, but it looks an awful lot like the cells in Iker’s house did.”

Marco was right. The room was bigger than the one they had last been held in, with four beds instead of two and a longer table under the small window. But otherwise it looked exactly the same. His eyes drifted from the glass wall separating their cell from the corridor to the security lock at the right side and then to the two empty beds at the opposing wall. There a thought struck him. “Where is Manu?”

Marco didn’t respond, but there was no need to, Thomas knew the answer from the way he avoided looking into the younger one’s eyes. A low whimper escaped Thomas’ throat when he remembered what had happened to him the last time he had been here, how Sergio had tortured him. And even though Sergio was long dead, the pained expression in Marco’s eyes told him that something similar was happening to Manuel right now.

“I’m sorry, Thomas,” Marco whispered in the same moment that they could hear a door opening in the distance. Both of them tensed when they saw three men coming around the corner, two of them wearing tightfitting black suits while they were dragging the one in their middle towards the cell.

“Manu!” Thomas shouted and he surged to his feet, noticing only now how weak he still was when he became dizzy again and Marco had to catch him in his arms.

“Take it easy, they shot you down several times because your ability kept neutralizing the drugs.”

They watched in silence as the door opened and the two strangers dragged a motionless Manuel inside of the cell. When they turned around to leave again, Thomas noted that both men had a similar looking wound right behind their left earlobe, but they had left the cell before he could take a closer look at it.

As soon as they were gone, Marco and Thomas knelt down beside Manuel, taking in his torn clothes and the large amount of blood on his body.

“Manu?” Thomas repeated more questioningly this time and felt relieved when he saw that his friend was conscious, his eyes fluttering open and roaming over Thomas’ face, the pain making it unable to focus.

Marco put an arm around Manuel’s back and Thomas helped him to pull the older man up and drag him towards one of the beds. As soon as they had disposed him on the mattress, Thomas laid his palm onto Manuel’s chest, ready to dive into his conscience and fix the damage. However Marco grabbing his arm tightly made him stop.

“No, Thomas, you can’t do that! You are still too exhausted to use your powers so soon again.”

“Manu is in great pain, I need to help him!” Thomas responded with conviction.

Marco looked torn between his worry for Manuel and Thomas, but nodded eventually. “Alright, but let me help you. I have been awake for a few hours already and have had more time to recover. You can draw the energy you need from me.”

Thomas flinched at the memory suddenly flashing before his mind, of vicious fire and screams of pain, Robert’s eyes looking at him pleadingly.

_Please watch out for Marco._

Thomas pushed the startled blond back. “No! I can do this on my own.”

He could see that Marco was about to protest, so without hesitation he dove into Manuel’s conscience.

It was only the second time that Thomas had been here, both times to heal his friend and he found himself wondering what Manuel’s light would look like under normal circumstances. For a brief moment Thomas was disorientated by the various whirling streams surrounding him, a veil of red blinding Thomas. He fought his way deeper, drawn in by the turquoise center of Manuel’s mind, but managed to resist the temptation, reminding himself that he was only here to fix physical damage. Thomas was still too weak to risk diving deeper into Manuel’s conscience, so he returned to the surface, trying to locate the source of the pain. There were several superficial cuts, presumably from knives, but the worst pain seemed to come from Manuel’s _mind._

Thomas fixed the cuts first before returning to Manuel’s center and try to find out what had happened to his friend. Gently he touched the turquoise ball of light, only for it to start pulsing violently, Manuel lashing out at the mental touch.

Thomas railed back, the reaction coming so unexpected that he lost the connection between them. He was back in his own body, staring down at a wide awake Manuel. The wounds had obviously healed, but the desperation in Manuel’s eyes matched the one that had been radiating from his center.

Thomas could only stare at his friend with growing irritation, wondering what could have disturbed Manuel that severely. He allowed Marco to push him onto the bed next to Manuel’s, the anger radiating from the former palpable. “What the hell were you thinking, Thomas? You shouldn’t use your ability when you can barely stand on your own two legs!”

Despite the seriousness of the situation Thomas could feel a small smile tugging at his lips as he looked up at Marco and those unique amber-green eyes spitting fire at him. “You are adorable when you are worried about me.”

Marco growled warningly. “Stop trying to be funny! I was forced to sit beside you and watch you getting weaker and weaker with no possibility to help you. Don’t ever scare me like that again.” He was about to turn away and without thinking Thomas reached out for his wrist to stop him. “I’m sorry, Marco. For not allowing you to help me. It was stupid, I know that as well. But I can’t allow any harm to come to you. It was the last thing Robert asked of me.”

Marco’s anger faded instantly, replaced by the familiar sense of melancholy that always overcame them when they were talking about Robert. “It wasn’t fair of him to ask this from you. He told me so many times that he would never leave me until I would send him away. And then he broke that promise. You don’t owe him anything, least of all when it endangers your own health. Robert loves you as much as he loves me, maybe even more. He would have never wanted you to hurt yourself in order to protect me.”

“I’m not only trying to protect you because I promised Robert to,” Thomas responded with conviction.

Marco frowned, clearly wanting to ask further, but the sound of the two men from previously returning to their cell interrupted them. There was a loud bleep before the door opened once again and one of them stepped in, greyish green eyes set on Marco. When the blond froze, it dawned on Thomas what was about to happen. With a warning sneer he placed himself in front of Marco. “Don’t you dare touching him!”

There was something strange about the look in the stranger’s eyes, a brief flash of panic in them before his gaze turned blank again and he said in a calm voice. “Step out of the way, Thomas. We will come to you later.”

Thomas didn’t move and a moment later he could feel something large and invisible hit him in the chest. He groaned as he was thrown out of the way, an invisible force pushing him flat against the wall of their cell as though he weighed nothing. For five solid seconds Thomas wondered what had just happened, but then the stranger’s partner stepped forward, laying one hand on the other man’s shoulder. “Enough, Nuri.”

The man called Nuri turned his eyes away from Thomas and finally he was released, slumping to the floor. Thomas was shocked when he realized that Nuri was one of them, that he had an ability as well but was helping whoever was holding them captive and torturing them. The feel of betrayal burned like acid and Thomas felt a sudden surge of hatred for Nuri.

When he saw that Nuri was returning his attention to Marco, Thomas tried to move forward but it was like running against a wall, the strange force Nuri seemed to be channeling holding him off. Marco took a step back, his eyes narrowing as he tried to concentrate on neutralizing Nuri’s ability. Thomas could feel the invisible wall becoming thinner, but still not enough to enable Thomas to help. Marco and also Manuel were most likely still under the influence of the drugs they had been shot with, so their abilities were not working properly. Panic coursed through Thomas and before he had become aware of losing control over himself, tongues of fire were erupting from his body and scorching his clothes as well as the air around him. Thomas could hear his own scream as the fire burnt his skin, lashing out at all sides and breaking the weakened wall separating him from Marco.

He barely noticed Nuri stumbling back to save himself from the vicious flames or his partner raising his arm and shooting another tranquilizer dart at him. What he could see was Marco’s shocked eyes staring back at him before the blond got back to his feet and Thomas could feel that he was trying to suppress his fire ability. For a brief moment Thomas felt hurt because this was their chance to escape, but Marco’s following words managed to cut threw the fog of fear in his mind.  
“You need to stop this, Thomas. You would be hurting Manu and me with your fire, remember?”

Thomas closed his eyes and tried to get the raging fire back under control. His panic had made him forget that the only reason his own fire could not kill him was his healing ability. If Thomas tried to fight his way out of here, he might accidentally kill Marco and Manuel. He shuddered at the memory of Lionel’s burnt body, the tragic proof that even Thomas couldn’t fix every kind of physical damage. The flames vanished as sudden as they had appeared and relief crossed Marco’s face right before Nuri’s partner shot Thomas once again. Thomas winced at the pain in his shoulder and he tried to fight off unconsciousness as he grabbed Marco’s arm for support. “I can’t allow them to hurt you, Marco.” His voice was already slurring, but he tried to tighten his grip, Marco’s anxious smile breaking his heart. “You can’t always protect me, Thomas. But you can try to fix the damage later.”

It was the last thing Thomas was able to hear before Marco was torn away from him and he was swallowed by darkness again.

 

***

 

Thomas had no idea for how long he was out. The silver moonlight was shining into their cell from the small window, but the trees and bushes behind it were casting long shadows, making it hard to see anything. With a groan Thomas got up from the mattress and he massaged his temples carefully before the previous events returned to his mind and he froze instantly.

Marco.

Thomas turned to his side, scanning their cell but all he could make out in the dark was Manuel lying on his own bed, eyes closed but his breathing not relaxed enough to fool Thomas. “Manu, are you awake?” he whispered and his best friend’s eyes snapped open instantly before he sat up, relief crossing his features. “Thomas, thank God you’re alright. You scared the hell out of me!”

Thomas frowned. “Why?”

“You were out for five hours straight. According to Marco you usually take two hours tops until they have to sedate you again.”

That was worrisome indeed but not very surprising. Thomas had apparently been sedated many times in the last two days and he had further used his ability to heal Manuel’s wounds. He was simply drained.

“Where is Marco?” he asked even though he already knew the answer.

Manuel’s expression became sympathetic, regret written all over his face. “They haven’t brought him back yet. Either he is still being tortured or he blacked out in between from the pain.”

Thomas closed his eyes, trying hard to shove away the unbidden images of Marco bloodied and bruised coming to his mind. “And how are you feeling? I tried healing you, but when I wanted to get inside your mind, you rejected me forcefully.”

“I’m sorry about that,” Manuel replied. “I didn’t intend to do that, I didn’t even realize it was you. I was just disturbed.”

That was not comforting at all. “What did they do to you?”

Manuel leaned back against the wall behind him, drawing up his knees to his chest. He looked smaller and more frightened than Thomas had ever seen him before. “I expected the physical pain, so the cuts weren’t the worst part, far from it actually.” He met Thomas’ eyes again, tears in his own ones. “The worst part was seeing that guy torture Erik.”

Thomas stilled. “You saw Erik?”

Manuel nodded. “He was strapped to the wall right beside me. And that guy, he kept asking me about Iker. But I couldn’t give him the answers he wanted to hear and every time I gave him a wrong one, he added another cut to Erik’s body.” Manuel shuddered at the memory, the tears finally falling from his eyelashes. “I was giving that bastard genuine answers, but he kept hurting Erik. I couldn’t stand to see it any longer, but he just kept going on and then Erik suddenly stopped screaming! I thought he was dead!”

Manuel’s voice had become hysterical and Thomas surged forward, putting his arms around the taller man, instinctively trying to soothe him. He barely brushed Manuel’s conscience, calming the waves of fear radiating from him. It took Manuel several minutes to calm his breathing and get himself under control again, but after a while he finally let go of Thomas, the panic in his eyes having faded a bit. Thomas was about to ask him whether he was alright when he could hear the far door opening again. They both tensed as they listened to the sound of footsteps and seconds later the two men from last time appeared, Nuri and the man who had shot Thomas down. But it was the person between them that held Thomas’ attention and made him surge forward. Instantly he felt Nuri’s wall holding him off again and Thomas snarled angrily, feeling his fingertips itch with the vicious fire that was about to erupt from his body again. But to everyone’s surprise Nuri’s partner was the one diffusing the situation.

“Drop the wall, Nuri. He is not trying to hurt us, he is merely concerned about his friend.”

Nuri gave him a look as though he wanted to protest, but eventually he obeyed, allowing Thomas to move forward again. The latter ignored them completely, instead putting his arms around Marco’s weak body and carrying him towards one of the beds on swaying feet. He had completely forgotten about the three other men present and watching him silently, his only focus the ashen face in front of him.

“Marco?” he whispered, gently carding his fingers through the once red-blond hair that was now tinged dark red which almost appeared black in the dim moonlight. Marco’s eyelids fluttered open after a moment and Thomas winced at the same haunted expression he had previously seen in Manuel’s eyes. “Erik. We can’t let them hurt Erik.” Marco’s voice was hoarse but determent. “Save your energy for him, Thomas, he is in a much worse state than I am.”

Thomas shook his head and pushed against Marco’s chest to make him lie down again. “I will heal you first.” He focused on the blond, trying to dive into his mind, but getting rejected by Marco instantly. “Don’t, please! He doesn’t deserve to be dragged further into our mess. And he is our only way to get Robert back.”

Thomas hesitated but only for a short moment. “Don’t try to use my longing for Robert against me. If this guy who is torturing us wanted to kill Erik, he would already be dead. But he isn’t, so apparently he is too important to just be killed off.”  
Marco clearly wanted to protest further, but Nuri interrupted them with an impassive voice. “It’s your turn now, Thomas. You can come with us willingly or we will have to shoot you down again. It’s your choice.”

“Just one moment,” Thomas retorted angrily. “Let me heal my friend, then I will come with you.”

Nuri opened his mouth to protest, but his partner raised his hand in a placating manner. “Let him. The further he wears himself out, the easier he will be to break.”

Thomas turned back to Marco. “Please Marco, let me heal you. I can’t stand to see you suffering.”

Marco hesitated, staring at Thomas as though he was waiting for him to change his mind. When Thomas just continued to stare at him pleadingly, he closed his eyes in defeat. “Alright. But you need to help Erik too, you know.”

“I’ll try,” Thomas responded and that seemed to be enough for Marco because he gave up his fight and finally allowed Thomas in. His mind was worse of a mess than Manuel’s - always had been and always would be – but Thomas knew it so well by now that he didn’t even have to search for the red streams indicating pain and sorrow, he already knew them by heart. He took his time feeding his energy to Marco, careful to heal all physical wounds he could spot before retreating again. Instantly he missed Marco’s mind and he had to fight against the urge to return and go deeper to heal more than just the physical damage. But that would have to wait for later.

He allowed the two men to grab him by his arms and lead him out of the cell, feeling Marco’s and Manuel’s eyes following him until he was out of sight.

Thomas noted the strangely emotionless look in Nuri’s eyes and turned to his right, expecting to find a similar expression there. But the man’s brown eyes were clear and sharp as they stared ahead.

“I don’t even know your name yet,” Thomas said, not really expecting to get an answer to that.

But the man gave him a brief, meaningful look before responding. “James Rodríguez. And before you ask, yes, I have a gift too. I can alter memories.”

Thomas frowned, unsure what to make of the piercing look James was giving that should apparently tell him something. “Why would you tell me this?”

“Because today a friend of yours showed up at Erik’s apartment, presumably to search for you.” Thomas tensed, knowing that James must be talking about Bastian, the only one who knew where they had been heading. “We expected someone to come looking for you, therefore we were waiting there, so I could alter your friend’s memory.”

The hope that had been building inside of Thomas’ heart was crushed instantly and before he could ask which kind of illusion James had implanted in Bastian’s mind, they had reached their destination. They had entered a small room with no natural light, white tiles covering the ground and all walls. A white neon light hanging from the ceiling was the only source of light. There was a steel table standing right under it, one that looked an awful lot like the one Sergio had used for his torture and Thomas shivered involuntarily. But it was the man strapped onto it that he couldn’t turn his eyes away from and Thomas’ insides froze as he recognized the face of Erik Durm.

Marco had been right to be so worried, Erik looked barely alive. He had been stripped of his shirt, his torso now covered in blood from the many cuts on his arms and chest. They were not deep, meant to draw blood and not to kill, but there were so many of them…

A low whimper escaped Thomas’ throat and he had barely realized that Nuri and James had let go of him and were watching his reaction closely. Slowly Thomas approached the table, taking in the work of violence in front of him, dozens of cuts that were not only the exact same length but also as parallel as though someone had drawn them with a set square. Whoever had done this, clearly had a lot of experience and taken his time with inflicting the damage.

“Erik?” Thomas asked horrified, but he received no answer. Carefully he reached out and touched one of Erik's collarbones. He usually preferred to touch a person’s chest for healing them as it was closer to the heart, but he was too afraid of touching the cuts on Erik’s chest.

Suddenly there was movement at the corner of his eye and he saw a tall man entering the room and eying him with the hint of a cruel smile. It was the same man who had shot Thomas and Marco, most likely also Manuel, down. The one who had tortured the latter two as well as Erik.

Thomas froze, unable to move as he stared at the man approaching him. “Hello Thomas. I’m glad we finally meet. With you being conscious, I mean.”

“Who are you?” Thomas asked in a hollow voice.

“My full name is Gianluigi Buffon, but most people just call me Gigi. What’s more important for you though is that I was Iker’s partner.”

Thomas narrowed his eyes, trying to soothe Erik’s aura from the outside while he kept his attention on Gigi. “That’s not true. I knew Iker’s partner, I was the one to kill him.”

Gigi’s expression darkened. “So you were the one shooting Sergio? I have to thank you for that even though I would have preferred to do that myself.” When he noticed Thomas’ confusion, he added, “Iker was my partner and later my boyfriend for several years. Until Sergio took him away from me.”

That was a surprising twist, Thomas had to admit. And that finally explained why Gigi hadn’t believed Marco and Manuel when they answered his questions about Iker. Of course Gigi would refuse to believe that Iker had been killed in the past without a valid proof. Like a corpse, which they didn’t have.  
“Why are you doing this? Torturing an innocent. Erik has nothing to do with this.”

Gigi smiled. “See, that’s where you’re wrong. It’s all about Erik. If he had been cooperative, then you and your friends wouldn’t be here now.”

“Erik knows nothing about Iker,” Thomas snarled angrily.

“I didn’t seek him out for knowledge I knew he didn’t have,” Gigi argued. “He is here because of his ability.”

Thomas frowned when he remembered Erik’s unique ability and realized what Gigi meant. “Finding what your heart most desires. You want him to find Iker for you.”

Gigi nodded approvingly. “Exactly. But as I said, he is not cooperative.”

“Erik can’t find Iker for you because Iker is dead,” Thomas shouted with renewed anger even though it was clear that Gigi was too blinded by his love to believe him.

For the first time fury appeared on Gigi’s face. “Stop saying that! He is not dead!” He closed his eyes, apparently reining in his anger because a few seconds later he looked at Thomas with that little, scary smile again. “I would really like to continue this conversation and finally get some useful information out of you. But unfortunately I have to save the fun part for tomorrow because as you already noticed Erik’s condition has worsened. I had asked Nuri to use his ability and build a wall between Erik’s mind and the sensations he is feeling so he wouldn’t black out from the pain. But Erik’s body has reached the edge now and since I don’t want him killed, I cannot continue torturing him. You are free to heal him now and then return to your cell.” Thomas stared down at the unconscious body, briefly contemplating to refuse healing him. He could merely keep Erik alive but leave him unconscious, which would prevent Gigi from torturing them further. But Gigi seemed to have read his thoughts because he added softly, “Don’t think about not healing him. Otherwise I will just take one of your friends and torture them. It all comes down to the same thing.”

Thomas stared after Gigi’s retreating back, hatred filling him as he laid his palm onto Erik’s collarbone again and dove into his conscience, trying to heal the wounds. There was so much whirling red inside of Erik’s conscience that it took Thomas ages to finally get a grip on them and force his own light blue energy into Erik until he felt his control slipping and with his last strength he forced himself to resurface before he could drown in Erik’s conscience. But he must have blacked out immediately after because when he awoke again, he was back in his cell and a very distressed Marco was staring down at him.

“Thomas? Are you alright?”

Thomas nodded and sat up on the bed slowly. “Where is Erik? What happened to him?”

However it was Manuel who answered him. “Don’t worry, he is here with us. He is sleeping now.”

Indeed, stretched out on the bed where Manuel was sitting, Thomas could recognize Erik’s long limbs. Someone had changed his clothes and judging by the blood-soaked, dirty cloth in Manuel’s hand the latter had also been allowed to wash him a bit. Erik looked so much better, now that no more cuts were visible and the blood was gone, but he still had dark circles under his eyes. Thomas just hoped that Gigi had told him the truth and Nuri’s wall had indeed cut Erik off from most of the pain. As soon as he was awake, Thomas would have to check on his mind and heal the damage there, a thought that unsettled him deeply.

He turned back to Marco, noting that the blond looked almost angry with him. “What’s wrong, Marco?”

“You blacked out from exhaustion when you were healing Erik,” Marco replied in an accusatory tone. “You could have died.”

“Well, I’m not dead, so-“

“Stop it!” Marco cut him off and Thomas flinched at the furious glare that was now directed at him. “Stop dismissing the value of your life like Robert has done so many times. Look where that got us, he could be dead for all we know! You were always better than that, so stop making the same mistakes he did!” He raised his hand to Thomas’ cheek, stroking it tenderly, his expression softening slightly. “I can’t deal with you losing you too, Thomas. I just can’t.”

Thomas was shocked into silence by the outburst and even more so Marco’s following confession. He still remembered the Marco who had not cared about him at all, the one who would have shot him to save Robert. Where had they gone from rivals to friends and now even more?

Despite knowing that he should better save the remnants of his strength for what was about come, Thomas couldn’t help but dive straight into the depths of Marco’s mind until he reached the purple center for the first time in four months. He had only been here once, back when he had not only been connected with Marco but also Robert, the three of them linking their minds together to save Manuel. The memory hurt almost as much as the realization of how much had changed since then: There were black threads tinging the glowing purple of Marco’s center, the pain, self-hatred and hopelessness eating him up from the inside.

And right beside it there was a pitch-black hole.

If he had been able to, Thomas would have screamed at the confirmation of his worst fear; that not only Robert’s physical body but also his conscience was gone. He turned away from the black void, both unwilling and unable to come closer and explore the area where Robert’s mind had once been. He briefly considered approaching the threads that had once tied Marco and Robert together in the closest way two minds could ever be connected, but decided against it out of respect for their relationship. Even now Thomas refused to believe that all hope was lost and he didn’t want intrude in this part of Marco that was reserved for his lover only. Instead he approached Marco’s center directly, fighting back the feeling of exhaustion threatening to make him lose his connection to the blond.

It was stupid, it was against better judgement but Thomas still wanted to let Marco know that he wasn’t alone in his longing for the man they both loved.

And so he reached out for the most intimate part of Marco’s mind, light blue and purple touching for the briefest of moments.

Thomas gasped at the feeling of getting touched inside out and he expected Marco to react the same way he had done all these months ago. But instead of instinctively rejecting him, the purple and black colored center quaked with the power of this touch, but then embraced him further. Thomas - and for sure also Marco’s – senses were overloaded with too many senses, various emotions coming through the link and a feeling of cold fire inside of his body before it was over and Thomas realized what had just happened. He could only stare in wonder at the various thin threads that had formed between them and when he touched them, he was surprised to find out that he could not rip them apart. He was shocked when he realized what he had done. He had formed a mental bond between Marco and himself and the worst part of it was it that it had been far from accidental. Thomas had known that he was about to touch the most intimate part of Marco’s mind and that there were bound to be consequences. But the extent of them exceeded his expectations. He turned to look to the side where similar albeit stronger threads had tied Marco and Robert together. He had expected to find loose hanging-threads there now that Robert’s center was gone, but to his surprise that wasn’t the case at all. Instead the threads coming from Marco’s center were still pulsing with sparkling silver energy. But most importantly they were still taut as though the connection had never been severed, the other ends of the threads merely disappearing in the black void.

It was a strange and unnatural sight.

But before Thomas could think about it, he felt Marco using their link to pull him back to the surface and a moment later Thomas opened his corporal eyes again. He couldn’t have been gone for more than a few minutes, but as he now looked at Marco’s wide eyes, he felt as though it had been several years. He was disorientated, not able to spare even a single thought to the three other men or their surroundings. He had completely forgotten about everything but that one earth-shattering revelation.

“Robert is not gone.”

Marco stared at him in confusion, the shock of what he must have felt when Thomas linked their minds still not worn off. “What are you talking about?”

The ghost of a smile appeared on Thomas’ face and he leaned forward, almost crushing Marco in his tight embrace while he whispered in a trembling voice into Marco’s ear, “He is still inside of you, Marco. I can’t see him, but I can see the bond you share with him. He is still there.”

A shiver wrecked Marco’s body and he clutched Thomas’ body just as tightly, hiding his face against Thomas’ neck while tears of relief were falling from his cheeks. “Thank you, Thomas. For everything.”

They didn’t say anything more but continued to hold each other for a while longer, until their bodies were aching and they finally lay down on the bed. Thomas refused to let go of Marco’s body as though separating meant losing his connection to Robert, and Marco seemed to feel similar. They both fell asleep in each other’s arms, their minds still deeply connected even in their sleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's funny about this chapter is that there hadn't meant to be much Thomas/Marco interaction, but these two just had other plans and refused to stay away from each other. That's the power of love I guess...


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My dearest Blue_Night,
> 
> You asked me for an update and how could I refuse? This series is still very special to me even though the feedback has decreased drastically.  
> I still can't believe that it has been almost a year to the day that I have last updated this story, especially when I rememember that it only took me five months to write the entire LtROI. I never lost interest in this story, but this is one of the hardest ones to map out and write down without getting caught up in my own net later on. And because of the little feedback, I kept pushing this story away until I started to come to terms with the thought that it might never get finished.  
> I hope you can forgive me for writing this chapter before answering to your lovely comment under 'Heal My Wounds' but I didn't want to spoil the surprise. When you see the notification in your inbox this time, your hopes will (hopefully) not be crushed again. And I'd like to say thank you for the request because without it I might have never come back to this story. I hope this chapter was worth the very long wait. My response to your comment will follow once I'm back home this evening. :-**

 

 

 

 

**Chapter 7**

When Robert woke up to the morning sun, he felt better rested than he had been in years. He had been deeply caught in a dream, one whose details he couldn’t remember clearly except for that one overwhelming sensation, an explosion of senses that had almost roused him from his sleep before the soft waves following it had dragged him back into the land of dreams.

As Robert woke up now, he felt an unreasonable smile tugging at his lips and the ache he had been feeling ever since he had pushed Thomas through the portal back into the present, had waned considerably. He knew it wouldn’t last for long, but it was a welcome change for once. He turned on the hard mattress of his cot, freezing when he saw that he wasn’t alone. He remembered falling asleep in The Darkness’ embrace, but Robert had never expected him to still be there in the morning.

“Good morning, sunshine.” The Darkness greeted him softly, a small smile tugging at his lips as his hand stroked up Robert’s side. “Did you sleep well?”

Robert stared at the face in front of his own for a moment, wondering what his alter ego was still doing here. Usually he would be inclined to believe that he was still dreaming but not when he could feel The Darkness’ body heat seeping into his skin. “I’m surprised that you are still here. Surely separating your conscious from mine must cost you a lot of energy and it can’t have been that interesting to watch me sleep.”

The Darkness reached up, brushing a strand of hair from Robert’s forehead. “It’s straining, yes. But I had promised to watch over you while you were sleeping.”

Robert’s eyes widened at the confession. “I didn’t expect you to take that so seriously. I wouldn’t have noticed if you had left me during your sleep.”

“Oh, I doubt that, little one,” The Darkness argued. “I was quite busy chasing some of your unpleasant dreams away.”

That explained why Robert had been sleeping so well last night. “But why now? I have been haunted by nightmares for far longer, why did you never intervene before?”

The hand at the side of his hair dropped to his chest and Robert shivered at the light touch, a strange mix of fear and anticipation coursing through him at the realization that The Darkness could probably rip his heart out without much ado.

“I was not strong enough to leave your mind until a few weeks ago. And I was not strong enough to protect your thoughts until last night. I’m becoming stronger only now, something I was convinced could only happen through your fear. You have lost yourself in this strange world that you don’t belong in, your yearning for your lovers and the pain of separation destroying you from the inside. Your dark thoughts made me stronger. But it seems that this isn’t the only way for me to gain power.”  
Robert frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Yesterday you trusted me,” The Darkness responded, his eyes shining in awe. It was an expression on him that Robert had never seen before.  “You trusted me enough to listen to me and even share the reins with me while we were searching for Rafa. And then you trusted me enough to fall asleep in my arms. It seems that has made me stronger as well because I have never felt this real before.” His eyes softened and it looked so uncharacteristic on the man that would turn Robert into a monster soon. There was the same possessiveness that The Darkness had always shown in regards to Robert but there was something kinder underneath, not quite love but… devotion.

He leaned closer, pressing his nose into Robert’s neck as though he was feeling him for the very first time, his fingers ghosting curiously over Robert’s exposed chest.

“Thank you, little one,” he whispered as he finally pulled back.

He was now hovering over Robert, his tight grip around the latter’s wrist making any escape impossible and suddenly Robert had to wonder… “What will happen once you become too strong? I know you don’t want to be trapped in my head any longer, that you want to be free. I told you that I will never willingly agree to you taking me over, so what will you do? Kill me?” He should probably be more scared by the prospect, but it was something he had come to associate with the Darkness a long time ago.

“I won’t have to,” The Darkness responded after a long moment. “Because I’m convinced that you will embrace me one day. When you realize that the world hates you for what you are and everyone has turned their back on you, you will come to me and fall into my arms.”

There was something ominous in his words, something that made Robert’s heartbeat quicken in fear. Part of him wanted to shove The Darkness away and tell him that he was wrong, but the other part was tired of their constant fighting. The Darkness was all that Robert had left from his old life and as wrong as it was, it made him feel a bit less lonely to have him by his side.

Some of the tension left his body and he closed his eyes. “Do you think we will ever get back into our time? Or are we stuck here forever?”

He didn’t open his eyes even when the grip around his wrist loosened and The Darkness slipped back to lay beside him, pulling his body closer. “I don’t want to lie to you, our chances are slim. But I promise you that I will do everything in my power to help you. But I can’t do it alone, I need you to work with me.”

Robert thought back to the previous day, opening his eyes to look at the man beside him. “Like we worked together when we were searching for Marc’s ship?” When The Darkness nodded, he couldn’t stop himself from adding, “Why are you even doing this? You are probably strong enough to take my body over against my will. Why is it so important to you that I consent to it all?”

The Darkness looked away, taking his time to sort out his thoughts and answer him. “I’m not sure. I can’t deny that it upsets me how you are constantly fighting against everything I say or do. A part of me is tempted to finally take the reins, but I know this is not what I want. With you trapped in your own mind, I would be all alone again and I’ve been alone for far too long. I don’t want to be separated from you again.”

Robert swallowed hard, scared to realize that he could relate to The Darkness’ thoughts very well. “You talk like we aren’t separated any longer. But we still are, just look at us.”

To his surprise The Darkness laughed fondly. “Oh, little one, do you think that I want us to magically merge into one persona? No, that will never be possible. There are other ways to be united and the two of us have already started doing that.”

Robert stiffened. “What do you mean?”

The Darkness reached out with his hand, the tips of his fingers lightly gracing along the skin of Robert’s jawbone. “You let me do _this._ Talking to you, touching you. You even allowed me to hold you in your sleep. After years of resentment you are finally opening your heart to me.” He shifted his position with cat-like grace and suddenly Robert found himself trapped underneath The Darkness’ body, unable to escape. The eyes that had been so full of detached coldness in Iker’s childhood home were now filled with various emotions, the most prominent being possessiveness. “This bond that we are forming is much stronger than you are aware of and you can’t break it. Do you know why?” He leaned down and Robert flinched when he could suddenly feel hot breath against the shell of his earlobe. “Because you don’t want to break it. There is more than fear and hatred tying you to me now, you have started caring about me. And as long as you do, I will never truly leave you.”

Robert was unable to respond right away, his breath coming in short gasps. His mind was a mess of whirling thoughts and emotions, trying to sort through The Darkness’ words and the intentions behind them. “What is it that you want from me? My loyalty? Well, then prove to me that it is true and that you care about me.”

The Darkness smirked. “Didn’t I already do that? Ever since we came here, I didn’t kill anyone, not even your friend Thiago when he was offering his gift to us. I was so tempted to drain him completely but I didn’t do it because he is your friend. I know it would have upset you.”

“No!” Robert argued vehemently, not sure why he was trying so hard to provoke a fight. “You didn’t spare his life because you cared about my feelings, you did it because you were afraid I would start to hate you again. All that you care about is yourself!”

The Darkness’ eyes flashed with anger so sudden that Robert jerked underneath him. For a moment the weight of the body covering his own seemed to become heavier, pressing him down into mattress but then The Darkness smiled. This time there was no warmth in it. “Keep on fighting me if that is what you want. But if you do, then don’t come to me when the world is letting you down.”

And suddenly he vanished. Robert blinked several times, feeling disorientated to find the weight that had been holding him down gone. He sat up slowly and let his eyes scan the room, hoping to spot the other one somewhere but he was alone in the room. He was not prepared for the renewed ache in his heart and he opened his mouth to call out for The Darkness. He stilled when he suddenly realized that he had no idea by what name to call him. ‘The Darkness’ sounded strange saying it out aloud and ‘Robert’ was just plain wrong. He swallowed against the lump forming in his throat, hating how desperate he sounded when he finally begged.

“Come back. Please, come back.”

But all he got was deafening silence, no matter how many times he called after his darker half.

 

***

 

When Thomas woke up after several hours of peaceful sleep and rubbed at his eyes, he winced at the feel of sandy tearstains on his face. Had he been crying in his sleep, perhaps from a nightmare?

He stood up slowly, glad to notice that he was well-rested and in good shape. Marco was still sound asleep beside him, his hand having moved to Thomas’ hipbone in his sleep. Carefully Thomas entangled himself from the blond, placing the hand onto the mattress before pulling up the blanket that had merely been covering Marco’s legs.

When he turned away, he could see that both Manuel and Erik were awake as well. Manuel was sitting on his bed with his hands in his laps, looking tense even when he smiled at Thomas. “Good morning. You look much better than I dared to hope for.”

“I’m fine,” Thomas returned as quiet as he could. “I was just drained and exhausted but I didn’t have any physical injuries that would hinder the recovery process.”

For the very first time Thomas turned to face Erik. They had never really met before, Thomas had merely seen his unconscious and bloodied body strapped to a table. Thomas had expected mistrust and wariness after what Erik had had to go through but to his surprise the hazel eyes watching him were warm and open.

Erik stood up from his own bed and Thomas was relieved to see that the younger man didn’t seem to be suffering from any lingering pain while he was coming closer. “Manuel said you were the one to heal me. I wanted to say thank you for that!”

Thomas looked away at that. “I’m not sure I deserve your gratitude. Now that your body is unmarred again, they can start torturing you all over again.”

Manuel cut him off instantly. “You had no choice. They would have left Erik to die and started torturing one of us if you hadn’t done as they said!”

Thomas couldn’t argue this point and he turned his attention back to Erik. “What do you know? About the guys holding us captive and about us.”

Erik bit his lip and sat down on Thomas’ bed. “Manuel already told me the most. I couldn’t make sense of Gigi’s words, why he seemed to be so full of hatred. He was telling me that I didn’t deserve to own such a special gift if I refused to help him. But I tried, I really tried to see where Iker was.” He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath to calm himself. “All I ever saw was bright white. And there was utter silence, so completely unnatural. I mean whenever you think that there is silence, there is always some background noise that you are not aware of, like the wind in the trees or the sound of your own feet as you walk. But there was nothing as though I had gone deaf.” He looked over at Manuel. “When I woke up here a few hours ago, your friend told me that Iker is dead. I was just glad that things were finally starting to make sense.”

Thomas nodded. “Unfortunately Gigi doesn’t believe us. I suppose he’s too scared to consider the possibility that the man he loved for so many years might be dead. And I don’t see how we can make him believe.”

They fell silent then, each one at a loss of what to do about their situation. After a few minutes Marco began to stir and Thomas turned towards him, part of him nervous if Marco would be as accepting of their newly formed bond now as he had been last night. They hadn’t spoken about it but Marco must have noticed by now that something fundamental had changed between them.

The blond stretched his limbs, the action accompanied by a heartfelt yawn. He stilled when he spotted Erik awake and his eyes lingered on the younger man for a moment before they travelled to Thomas.

When their eyes met, Thomas felt the tight knot in his stomach loosen and he was overcome with the urge to throw himself into Marco’s arms. He forced himself to stay still and wait for Marco to make the first move.

Slowly Marco rose from the bed and came to stand in front of Thomas, looking up at him with a raw emotion in his eyes. It was hard to determine whether he wanted to kiss Thomas or backhand him across the face. His voice was gentle though. “What did you do when you were inside of my mind? I feel…”

Thomas tried to smile. “Less alone?” He waited until Marco had nodded hesitantly before continuing. “I feel the same. I went deeper into the corners of your mind than I ever dared to go before. I don’t regret what I have done but I suppose I owe you a big apology. I should have asked for your consent first.”

Marco frowned, his voice more urgent when he repeated. “Thomas, what did you do?”

Thomas steeled himself for the fight that would surely follow his confession. “I formed a mind bond between us. When I reached for your core, our souls touched and now they are forever bound together.”

There was a long moment during which no one spoke, heavy silence settling over them. Then Marco moved forward and Thomas flinched when their bodies made contact and he was pushed against the glass wall behind him. He expected the pain of a blow but instead there were lips crashing against his own almost violently. The kiss was hard and bruising, splitting Thomas’ upper lip but the whirling of emotions coming from Marco was so palpable that Thomas didn’t try to fight him off, melting against the younger one’s body. The kiss became gentler with time, like lava melting stone and eventually Marco released his lips.

His amber-green eyes were shining with love and gratitude. “Thank you, Thomas. I don’t know how you did it but for the first time since Robert has left, I could fall asleep with a smile on my face. For the first time in months I didn’t feel alone. I can never tell you how much this means to me!”

His words caused Thomas to shiver and he brought their foreheads together, his hand gripping the back of Marco’s neck possessively. “You will never be alone again, Marco. No matter what happens, no matter what we find at the end of this road, I will never leave you. I promise you that.”

Marco let out a sob. “But it is Robert that you love. How can you still have room in your heart for me?”

Thomas tried to shove away the pain these words caused him when he realized that without meaning to Marco was also denying his feelings for Thomas. But this was not the point here. Thomas had not bound his feelings for Marco to the condition that the latter returned them. They had set out on this impossible mission for Robert; all they had done since then was for Robert only. They could deal with everything else later.

He tried to keep the hurt from his voice when he finally responded. “You of all people shouldn’t be asking me this. You have loved Mario so deeply even beyond his death. And now you are putting your life on the line to save Robert.”

“No,” Marco argued. “I mean, how could you still fall in love with _me_ after all that I did? You saw first-hand how Robert had to suffer because of my hatred and thirst for revenge!”

Without warning Thomas reversed their positions, pinning Marco against the glass pane without tightening the grip around the blond’s neck. “What you did was wrong. I won’t lie; I don’t think I can ever fully forgive you for hurting him this way when he was at his most vulnerable. But I realized that it is not in my place to judge you. Robert forgave you and I will respect his decision. You ask how I can be in love with you when you were the one responsible for Robert’s suffering? Well, how could Robert fall in love with me when he already had you? How come that he couldn’t choose between the two of us when he was forced with this ultimatum? Because love isn’t rational, it isn’t limited by ‘whats’ and ‘ifs’.” He pressed Marco a bit harder against the glass, making his shoulders shake in his need to make him understand. “I love you, Marco Reus, and no one can change the way I feel. Not even you.”

He finally let go of Marco and turned away, not wanting to see the other man’s reaction. Manuel and Erik who had watched the scene in silence looked surprised by his revelation and Thomas couldn’t blame them. He had a hard time understanding his own feelings, he couldn’t expect either of them to do the same, especially not Erik who barely knew anything about him.

Behind him Marco had pushed himself off the wall, his voice quiet and insecure when he spoke. “Thomas, I…” He broke off and part of Thomas was expecting him not to say anything at all. What Marco said then was probably not what he had intended to, but it threw Thomas off-guard nevertheless. “What happens to our bond if we don’t get Robert back? Will it fade away?”

Thomas turned back towards him and upon seeing the fear in Marco’s eyes, all his frustration vanished in a heartbeat. “The bond that we share goes far beyond Robert by now. Will it change if we are forced to accept that he will never be a part of our lives again? Yes for sure. We will have to find our way around this hole in our hearts but we will still have each other to hold on to.  Should I have to live a life without Robert, it won’t be without you as well. Unless you want me to leave.”

They stared at each other for several tense seconds then Marco walked towards him once again, slower this time. Thomas felt like a weight was being lifted off his chest and he tilted his head to the side when Marco moved in and their lips touched again. The kiss was soft and reassuring, erasing the doubt that had been nagging at them both. It was no less intense than their first one, the bond between humming contently. When Marco was about to pull back, Thomas chased after his lips, taking charge of the kiss.

By the time they parted, Thomas had almost forgotten that Marco still owned him an answer. The blond’s eyes were intense and full of determination. “I would be glad to have you by my side. In whatever form that will be.”

Thomas smiled. “We can figure this out once the time has come. I refuse to lose hope that we will find our lover again.”

They had been so lost in each other that both of them flinched in surprise when Erik spoke up all of a sudden. “This is why you came to my apartment to search for me, isn’t it? Because Robert is what your heart most desires and you wish to find him.”

Thomas looked over Marco’s shoulder to meet Erik’s gaze. “Exactly. You are our only hope of finding him. If you can’t do it, no one can.”

Erik looked confused by his words. “Why wouldn’t I be able to find him? If he is truly the most important thing to you, then I will find him no matter where on Earth he is.”

Thomas shifted his gaze to Manuel and he was glad when his friend was the one stating the crucial problem. “It’s not a matter of place but time.” He added in an ominous tone. “Tell us, Erik, can you find Robert no matter what time he is living in?”

Erik looked between the three friends uncomprehendingly. But before he could say anything, the noise of a beeping door as it opened interrupted them. They all tensed up when they heard the sound of footsteps approaching them. A moment later James and Nuri appeared at the other side of the glass. They were wearing dark suits again and the latter was holding a pair of handcuffs in his hands.

James’ eyes eventually settled on Thomas. “It is your turn now. If you give our boss what he wants, all of this will end and you will be free again.”

Thomas set his jaw. “I can’t give him what he wants, no one but God can do that. Just let us go. Tell your boss that.”

The corner of James’ mouth twitched. “He can’t let you go just like that.” He hesitated, his eyes suddenly darkening in an almost challenging manner when he added. “You’re a wild card that could go either way. Isn’t that so, Thomas?”

Thomas faltered in his steps. The words were vaguely familiar to him, he had heard the same statement before but not out of James’ mouth…

Before he could figure it out, Nuri opened the cell door. “Please don’t make this harder than it has to be.” His voice sounded impassive but Thomas had the feeling that his compulsion was much stronger than James’. Nuri wouldn’t think twice about hurting him or his friends to make him cooperate.

Slowly Thomas offered his wrists and Nuri put the handcuffs around them. He could feel a tug in his chest and when he looked back, there was raw pain written all over Marco’s face. “I wish you wouldn’t have to do this, Thomas. I wish I could save you.”

Thomas tried to smile but he knew it wouldn’t reach his eyes. “Not this time, Marco.”

He stumbled when Nuri pulled him towards the door by his arm and he closed his eyes at the fear in his heart as he tried to steel himself for what was about to come.

Nuri and James had almost led him out of the corridor when he heard Erik call after him. “I will try, Thomas! Just do your best to make it through this and I promise you, I will try to find him once you are back!”

He didn’t get to respond when Nuri pushed him through the doorframe harshly but he barely registered it. Erik would try to help them. They had never been this close to finding Robert.

Thomas was still smiling at the thought by the time Nuri and James left him alone, strapped tightly onto a cold and clean table as he awaited his fate.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave comments and/or kudos. There is nothing more rewarding than some kind of feedback. :)


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